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Magnus Carlsen vs Veselin Topalov
Morelia-Linares (2008)  ·  English Opening: King's English. Four Knights Variation Flexible Line (A28)  ·  1-0
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Given 28 times; par: 65 [what's this?]

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Kibitzer's Corner
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Mar-05-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Eyal: <hitman84: [33...Qd7 34 Bh6 Nc6] 35.h3 Qf7 36.Be2 (threat Bf3 and Bxc6) c3 37.bxc3 Qe7 38.Qf2 Bf7 39.Bb5 Nd4 40.Bc4 b6<stopping Qc5> 41. Bf7+ Qf7 42.Qh4 Nc6 43.Qa4 Qd7 44.Qa3 Qe7 45.Qb3+ Qf7 46.Qa3 =>

39...Nd4 doesn't make sense in this line because White simply plays 40.cxd4, but in any case 35...Nd8 - with the idea of bringing the knight to f7 - seems to give Black an advantage. In order to maintain the balance, White should probably play either 35.Bxc4+ or 35.Be2 immediately - where Black doesn't have time for 35...Nd8 because of 36.Bg4 followed by 37.Qxd8+! in case the queen retreats.

Mar-05-08  hitman84: uhh yes got the lines mixed up.

Yes 35..Nd8 offers resistance but I don't know if its winning. White can just keep the knight pinned.

I thought of Be2 but my main idea was to exchange the c6 knight. Black can play actively with..

35.Be2 Qf5 36.h3 e4 or else white can again transpose with 36.Bc4+

Yes I feel Bxc4 is the best move.

35.Bc4+ Bc4 36.Qc4 Qf7 37.Qc1

Mar-05-08  Mendrys: This is a perfect example of one making their own luck. Carlsen's brilliant eye for tactics and the vigor in which he played gave Topolav plenty of room to go wrong.

Carlsen is a half point behind Anand because he is a great player and is playing very solid chess, not because he is lucky.

Mar-05-08  geobel: I really dont know what happened with topa - he played very well and his position was really better.

Mar-05-08  hitman84: It was better, but more importantly bitter.
Mar-05-08  ajile: Carlsen will be world champion someday.
Mar-05-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Ulhumbrus: <Eyal: <Ulhumbrus: One alternative is 27...Qb8, keeping the e5 pawn under attack, so that on 28 f5 Black has the move 28...Qxe5. Another possibility is 27...Qb6 at once in which case after 28 f5 fxe5 White cannot play f6 as he does not have a B on g5 yet.> 27...Qb8? is bad because it allows 28.Bxc5 - and unlike the game (with the black queen on d8), after 28...fxe5 White has time for 29.Bxf8, since his queen at h4 isn't under threat. 27...Qb6, on the other hand, might have been a better option for Black - though after 28.f5 fxe5 29.fxg6 Rxf1 30.Bxf1 hxg6 31.Qe7 White still seems to have strong initiative for the sacrificed pawns, and Black has to defend very carefully.> 31...Nc6 offers to return one of the pawns in order to remove the Queens as well as getting ready for ...Nd4 eg 32 Qxc5 Qxc5 33 Bxc5 a6
Mar-05-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  Ulhumbrus: After 30...Bh8 instead of 30...c4 one possibility is 31 Nc3 getting ready for Ne4 followed by f7+ and then Nf6+. On 31...Nc6 32 Bc4+ is possible.
Mar-05-08  Xaurus: <Carlsen is a half point behind Anand because he is a great player and is playing very solid chess, not because he is lucky.>

I agree.

He brings out the worst in an opponent. That takes skill and talent.

Mar-06-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  notyetagm: <Xaurus: <Carlsen is a half point behind Anand because he is a great player and is playing very solid chess, not because he is lucky.> I agree.

He brings out the worst in an opponent. That takes skill and talent.>

True, but it sure makes your life easy when your opponent's play 79 ... Kf6-e5?? and 34 ... Na5-c6??, turning draws into losses.

Those two draws-oops??-losses by Shirov and Topalov are the difference between Carlsen being +2 and +0.

Mar-06-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  notyetagm: Sometimes I am just completely amazed that someone who makes as many ??-blunders as Topalov could break the 2800-elo barrier.

You -never- see the other top players like Anand, Kramnik, Leko, Aronian, etc. blunder like Topalov. I would almost dare say that Topalov makes as many ??-blunders as the rest of the top 10 -combined-.

Mar-06-08  Discerning King: 23.Rd4 Cunning!!... like it
Mar-06-08  Kaspablanca: hmmm. Is clear that carlsen won mainly because of terrible blunders by Shirov(he blocked his bishop that allowed carlsen promote to queen9 and Topalov( he had a better position but made a terrible blunder). Given these examples we can say carlsen is very lucky in this tournament.
Mar-07-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  notyetagm: <Kaspablanca: hmmm. Is clear that carlsen won mainly because of terrible blunders by Shirov(he blocked his bishop that allowed carlsen promote to queen9 and Topalov( he had a better position but made a terrible blunder). Given these examples we can say carlsen is very lucky in this tournament.>

That is why the chess saying is that the player who played the best chess in the tournament is the player who finished -second-, implying that the person who finished first got the lucky breaks.

I am just astonished at how many times this year that Carlsen has won from bad/lost/drawn positions. This drawn game against Topalov, the Van Wely game from Corus in which VW blew Magnus off the board and ended up losing, etc.

Mar-07-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  luzhin: "The good player is always lucky". Capablanca
Mar-07-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  notyetagm: <luzhin: "The good player is always lucky". Capablanca>

True, but this is getting kind of ridiculous:

Shirov's 79 ... Kf6-e5??
Topalov's 34 ... Na5-c6??
the VW game at Corus

What the hell?!

Mar-07-08  Xaurus: <notyetagm>

What about Shirov giving the point away to Radjabov yesterday?

I don't see you complain about that.

Mar-07-08  percyblakeney: It's not as if Carlsen never loses points on mistakes himself :-) He blundered when he lost against Radjabov and Leko in Linares, as against Anand and Leko (again) in Corus. Not as big mistakes of course, but when you get pressed into positions as the one Shirov had against Carlsen, where Shirov thought he was lost also without the final blunder, it's easier to make mistakes.
Mar-07-08  MrWhite: I think Topalov needs to be aggressive in order to use it as a kind of defense, if the opponent is the aggressor his play usually collapses. Pity but true.
Mar-07-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  notyetagm: <Xaurus: <notyetagm>

What about Shirov giving the point away to Radjabov yesterday?

I don't see you complain about that.>

Blunders are going to happen, no doubt about it.

It's just that it seems like every other day is Christmas for GM Carlsen recently.

Mar-07-08  Riverbeast: Fischer: "People have been playing me below strength for fifteen years!"

If the kid's got a psychological edge on these guys, more power to him

Mar-26-08  zoat22: <notyetagm> precisely!!!
Mar-27-08  ivan999: “Luck never gives; it only lends”
swedish proverb
Apr-24-09  WhiteRook48: 34...Nc6??
May-14-13
Premium Chessgames Member
  Cooleyhigh: Move 30. f6 pawn power. Probably the strongest piece at that moment.
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