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Laszlo Szabo vs Robert James Fischer
Buenos Aires (1970), Buenos Aires ARG, rd 11, Aug-04
English Opening: Symmetrical. Symmetrical Variation (A36)  ·  0-1

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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Kibitzer's Corner
Dec-12-03  fred lennox: 9...Na5, N on the rim is dim - for the opponent! 24 Nd4 position slightly favors black with R on c2 and B on g7. 24 Bxd4 Fisher finds a forcible continuation by exchanging his important bishop for a knight. 26 Re1 is forced. (Rd1 27...Be2) 28 Rxb5 black slightly furthers his advantage for the pawns are on one side favoring the knight. With ...Ne2+...Nc3 it is decisive. Rf8 can go to d8 to d2. In my humble opinion this is one of the greatest knight games ever, in brilliancy, subtlety and depth.
Jul-13-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  offramp: Yes... One of Fischer's greatest ever games. Almost like magic!
Mar-23-05
Premium Chessgames Member
  offramp: I am surprised that this hasn't been kibitzed more often...
Sep-13-05  ajile: People are comparing this as equal to the Immortal Game with Byrne.

..please

=: /

Sep-13-05  Steppenwolf: Not worth much. Looks like run of the mill GM sunday blitz.
Sep-13-05  paladin at large: <this is one of the greatest knight games ever, in brilliancy, subtlety and depth. > The black knight certainly does an excellent job of enabling the black rooks to snuggle in on the seventh rank.

Speaking of heroic knights brings to mind a different kind of game where the knight plays a starring role: Some day, when I have time, I will submit the legendary Capablanca-Ravinsky game, a clock simul from 1935, featuring 30 moves by Capablanca's knight in a blockade game to remember.

May-16-06  RookFile: I was playing this over, the whole sequence of play from moves 14 to 24 is really something. Fischer's games are often marked by DEEP calculation of complicated lines by RJF.
Jul-08-06  notyetagm: In Chernev's book on the best chess players, he asks this question about Fischer:

<How does Fischer always manage to get his rooks on the 7th rank?>

Position after 31 ... ♖dd2:


click for larger view

Jul-01-07  2Towers: <notyetagm> In Chernev's book on the best chess players, he asks this question about Fischer: <How does Fischer always manage to get his rooks on the 7th rank?>

I think the answer is simply, " It's the stroke of his (Bobby) genius."

May-13-10  SpiritedReposte: Great Fischer game! Everything just flows together perfectly. The initial 15. ...Qc7 and 16. ...Qc5 idea is deep. Thats GM chess!
May-13-10  ckeckmate: Szabo mentioned that Fischer had several exausting games prior to this one and thought Fischer should be pretty tired. Thus, around the 25th move, Szabo offered a draw that Fischer rejected by saying "Too early".
May-13-10  Marmot PFL: If Szabo had seen what was coming he might have survived with 30 Rb3 or 30 Rb7 followed by Kg1 and Rf1, passive though it is. 30 Rc5? looks superficially like a good pin, but its really white's rook that's in trouble as Kg1 loses to Ne2+.
Jun-07-11  joelsontang: It would have been a draw after 24.Nf4. White loses by force after 24.Nd4.

Someone said Fischer's play at Buenos Aires 1970 was just all-rounded: Like Capablanca, he made something out of nothing against Szabo; like Tal, he unleashed a sacrifice against Panno; like Petrosian, he manoeuvred mercilessly against Matulovic.

Jun-07-11  Petrosianic: <I think the answer is simply, " It's the stroke of his (Bobby) genius.">

Or maybe the even simpler answer is that he doesn't. The majority of Fischer games that don't feature Rooks on the 7th rank. Chernev tended to gush a bit about the world champions. I remember one Petrosian game he annotated where he acted like playing the Winawer was some bold new idea.

Jun-07-11  fab4: <Petrosianic>

I agree. But you're dealing with myths and legends emanating from the greatest player in chess history. It's as a matter of course.

Jun-07-11  ughaibu: Petrosianic: you may want to comment on the kibitzing here: G Swathi vs Short, 2011
Jun-07-11  fab4: <ughaibu>

lol.. It was YOU who accused RJF of 'bad sportsmanship' over the board , and yet when confronted could'nt 'back it up' ..

Yet you still trawl up this thread ?!!

Jun-07-11  ughaibu: I guess you really are as thick as you appear. At least, I cant think of any way that a person less thick could imagine that pretending to be so thick would be strategically effective. Can you?
Sep-30-11  Cemoblanca: After Fischer took the World Championship title from Spassky, Spassky later commented "Fischer has a burning desire to win every game."

This can be seen again in this game: He has literally burned off the board like an alien! ;0)

Jan-08-15
Premium Chessgames Member
  SteinitzLives: 29. Kh1 odd as it looks, is described as saving, because in future variations none of the Black R captures on f2 will be with check. Szabo made what looked like the tiniest inaccuracies from what appeared a dead-drawn position. Fischer's will to win these type of positions is seen today in Carlsen's games.
Jan-08-15
Premium Chessgames Member
  SteinitzLives: The other slightly awkward looking move that Szabo missed (but who can blame him) was 31. Bf3. The e pawn and d2 stay defended this way.
Mar-25-19  Granny O Doul: <How does Fischer always manage to get his rooks on the 7th rank?>

Long arms.

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