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Paul Keres vs Max Euwe
FIDE World Championship Tournament (1948), The Hague NED / Moscow URS, rd 16, Apr-22
Spanish Game: Open Variations. Howell Attack (C81)  ·  1-0

ANALYSIS [x]

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Kibitzer's Corner
Feb-25-03  refutor: Euwe must've been in severe time trouble to play 33. ... Qe7? GMs make mistakes too people, but if this game was Botvinnik-Keres instead of Keres-Euwe the conspiracy people would be out in full force ;)
Feb-25-03  Spitecheck: White was threatening e6 wasn't he? I'm not sure what Black should play here, I think he's got the worst of it. Qe7 is obviously a blunder, but it may not have changed the impending result of the game.
Feb-25-03  Spitecheck: Well after asking the Comp it says that Black has to play Rb7 or Kh7 and after Rc8, e6 is threatened again. I think Euwe simply played Qe7 to avoid all the yucky analysis to contend with Rc8, he succeeded :).
Feb-25-03  corbinamman: so does white have a won game? what is the line? I see the threat of e6 being met with a pawn sac as follows: 33...Kh7 34 Rc8 h4 35 e6 fxe6 36 Nxe6 d4 37 Nxd4 Qg7.
Feb-26-03  Spitecheck: I don't remember the line now I'll have a look at it later, I remember in one of the lines the computer does sac the d pawn though so you are probably on the right track. I'm only using Crafty so maybe someone wants to turn on Fritz or sim for like 5 minutes. With your line however instead of Nxd4 did you look at Ng5+, that looks slightly dangerous for the black king? If Kh6 Rh8 Kg7 Rh7 etc and if Kg7 Qc5 or perhaps even Qc4 look potent. after Qc5 white is threatening Qf8 (#ing) or simply Nxe4.
Feb-26-03  Spitecheck: This is the best line of play it came up with, oh and it rules out 33...Rb7 after some thought 34. Rc8+ it dumps the queen Qxc8.

depth=15 +1.70 33. ... Kh7 34. Rc8 Qe7 (e6 not as dangerous with the queen on the black squares as Qf6 is just tenable) 35. Nc6 d4 36. Qxd4 Bxc6 37. Rxc6 a5 38. f5 Rc7 39. Rxc7 Qxc7 40. fxg6+ fxg6 41. Qf4 Qb7 42. Qf2

So it's feasible in the line that Euwe played Qe7 thinking ahead to the Kh7 Rc8 line. Doesn't really matter either way, it doesn't transpose though.

Feb-26-03  corbinamman: thanks for taking the trouble. that helps me see more.
Nov-19-10  soothsayer8: Qe7?? ouch...Kinda sad to see a former World Champion (who defeated Alekhine, no less) to completely fall apart like this in this tournament.
Apr-09-14  DrGridlock: This game appears in "Mastering the Chess Openings: Volume 1" by John Watson as an example on the Ruy Lopez Open Variation. Watson comments, "It will at least give you a start towards understanding how the Open Ruy should not be played [by black]."

Thematically, Watson argues after Black's 18 ... Rc8, "Black doesn't recognize how utterly decisive the control of c5 and d4 will prove." After White's 19 Rc1 Watson writes, "Here it is: White controls d4 and c5 and is ready to double rooks (or triple pieces) down the c-file. Euwe doesn't want to be squeezed to death, so he tries to rid himself of the backward pawn."

Komodo prefers (slightly) Qb4 to Qb6 for black at move 19, but prefers both to 19 ... c5.

Paul Keres - Max Euwe


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1. = (0.14): 19...Qb4 20.Rc6 Bd7 21.Rc5 c6 22.Qc3 Qe4 23.Rd3 Rab8 24.Re3 Qf4 25.Nd4 Rb6 26.h3 Rcb8 27.Re1 h5 28.Re3 Rb4 29.Rd3 R8b6 30.Rd1 Qe4 31.Nxc6 Bxc6 32.Rxc6 Rxc6 33.Qxc6

2. = (0.15): 19...a5 20.Rdc2 a4 21.bxa4 Rxa4 22.Nd4 Qb6 23.Nc6 Qxe3 24.fxe3 Kf8 25.Nd4 Ra2 26.Rxc7 Rxc7 27.Rxc7 Rxb2 28.Ra7 h5 29.Ra8+ Ke7 30.h4 Rd2 31.Rg8 g6 32.Ra8 Bd7 33.Ra5 Be6 34.Ra7+ Ke8 35.Ra8+

3. = (0.25): 19...Qb6 20.Qxb6 cxb6 21.Ra1 a5 22.Nd4 g6 23.f4 Kg7 24.Nb5 Rab8 25.Kf2 Rc6 26.Rad1 h6 27.Kg3 Rf8 28.h3 Rd8 29.Kh2 Rc5 30.Nd6 Rc7 31.g4 d4 32.Rxd4

Apr-09-14  DrGridlock: <refutor: Euwe must've been in severe time trouble to play 33. ... Qe7? GMs make mistakes too people, but if this game was Botvinnik-Keres instead of Keres-Euwe the conspiracy people would be out in full force ;)>

No conspiracy theory here. Euwe got on the wrong side of opening theory in 1948, and had a difficult position even before the Qe7 blunder.

Apr-09-14  diceman: <refutor:
Euwe must've been in severe time trouble to play 33. ... Qe7?>

...its a "Howell-er."

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