Mario Monticelli vs Frank James Marshall (1931)

Mario Monticelli vs Frank James Marshall
Praha 1931 · Queen's Gambit Declined: Ragozin Defense (D38) · 0-1

[Event "Praha"]
[Site "ol"]
[Date "1931.??.??"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "13"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Mario Monticelli"]
[Black "Frank James Marshall"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "54"]

1.d4 {Notes by Frank Marshall} Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4
{Nowadays known as the Ragozin System, this line was played by
mysef and others long before the Russian master decided it was
good.} 5.Qb3 {5 Qa4+ Nc6 6 Ne5 O-O (or 6...Bd7 )gives White no
advantage.} c5 6.a3 {Waste of time; either 6 Bg5 or e3 is
preferable.} Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 O-O 8.Bg5 cxd4 9.cxd4 Nc6 {! Not
minding the doubled pawns which I get two moves later.}
10.cxd5 exd5 11.Bxf6 gxf6 {...Qa5+ was also good.} 12.Qc3
{Preventing ...Qa5+. At first glance White appears to have an
excellent game, in view of his opponent's disorganized pawn
structure. It soon becomes apparent, however, that this
drawback is outweighed by Black's rapid development and his
strong queen-side initiative.} Bf5 13.e3 Rc8 14.Nd2 {Of course
not 14 Bd3?? Ne5 and wins. Black's play on the c-file,
culminating in occupation of c2, soon gives him a decisive
grip on the position.} {So that if 17 O-O Rxd2.} Na5 15.Qb4
Rc2 16.Bb5 Qb6 17.Nf3 Rfc8 18.O-O a6 {! Positionally
decisive.} 19.Ba4 Rb2 {! The exchange of queens is virtually
forced, after which Black will have an easy win : two pawns to
one on the queen-side, seventh rank and occupation of the weak
white squares.} 20.Qe7 {Since this does not avoid the
exchange, and in fact only gains time for Black by making an
immediate ...b5 possible, he should have played Qxb6
directly.} Qe6 21.Qxe6 Bxe6 {21...fxe6 is desirable to round
out Black's pawns, but then 22 Nh4 is a good reply.} 22.h3 b5
23.Bd1 Rc3 {The winning move. Black forces a powerful passed
b-pawn.} 24.Nh4 Nc4 25.a4 b4 26.Bg4 b3 27.Bf5 Rd2 {White
resigns, as the b-pawn cannot be stopped. It is interesting to
reflect that the queen-side attack succeeded with all the
speed which is characteristic of a direct king-side attack!}
0-1

To move:

Last move:

Annotations by Frank James Marshall. [9 more games annotated by Marshall]

explore this opening	find similar games	1,298 more games of Marshall
	PGN: download \| view	Help: general \| java-troubleshooting

TIP: As you play through the game, you can get the FEN code for any position by right-clicking on the board and choosing "Copy Position (EPD)". Copy and paste the FEN into a post to display a diagram.

For help with this chess viewer, please see the Pgn4web Quickstart Guide.

May-15-06		ChessDude33: No Kibitzing? Wow, this was a great game!

Jan-26-07		Leviathan: Great game indeed! Black's queenside attack is extraordinarily powerful. However, I like 19.Nh4 much more than 19.Ba4, that looks a bit too passive in my humble amateur opinion. If 19. Nh4 Bg5 20.Bd3 or if 19. Nh4 Be4 20.Bd7 seems to give black a little more counterplay.

NOTE: You need to pick a username and password to post a reply. Getting your account takes less than a minute, totally anonymous, and 100% free--plus, it entitles you to features otherwise unavailable. Pick your username now and join the chessgames community!

If you already have an account, you should login now.

Please observe our posting guidelines:

No obscene, racist, sexist, or profane language.
No spamming, advertising, or duplicating posts.
No personal attacks against other users.
Nothing in violation of United States law.

See something which violates our rules? Blow the whistle and inform an administrator.

NOTE: Keep all discussion on the topic of this page. This forum is for this specific game and nothing else. If you want to discuss chess in general, or this site, you might try the Kibitzer's Café.

Messages posted by Chessgames members do not necessarily represent the views of Chessgames.com, its employees, or sponsors.

Spot an error? Please submit a correction slip and help us eliminate database mistakes!
This game is type: CLASSICAL (Disagree? Please submit a correction slip.)

Featured in the Following Game Collections [what is this?]

zakir's favorite games marshall annotate
by zakir

Annotated Games
by Morphischer

126.
from MARSHALL'S BEST GAMES OF CHESS by hitsujyun