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Wilhelm Steinitz vs Emanuel Lasker
St. Petersburg Quadrangular (1895/96), St. Petersburg RUE, rd 11, Jan-08
Queen's Gambit Declined: Harrwitz Attack (D35)  ·  1-0

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 2 OF 2 ·  Later Kibitzing>
Aug-03-05  dac1990: This game should go into that "Picteresque Positions" collection as the "flying v" of pawns.
Aug-04-05  iron maiden: Unfortunately that collection probably won't be added to in the near future.
Nov-30-05  KingG: This is a fantastic game by Steinitz. Who said that Queen's Gambit Declined had to be boring? It's a shame that Capablanca and Alekhine didn't take a leaf out of Steinitz's book for their match.
Nov-30-05  Guest1825: If lightning, blitz terms are used for games faster than 40 minutes. What do they call games that take 8 hours to finish: Steinblitz, Lightninglasker?
Jun-03-06  shutupimthinking: At the risk of sounding foolish: is the sac 10...Nxd4 playable? After 11.exd4 Qxd4 12.Be3 Qe5 black threatens f5, but after 12. Bxc7 I'm not so sure. Can someone give me a solid refutation?
Jun-03-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  beatgiant: <shutupimthinking>

<After 11.exd4 Qxd4 12.Be3 Qe5 black threatens f5>

After the above, White has 13. Ne2 preventing f4 and in turn threatening Bd4. It looks like White is on top there.

Jun-03-06  shutupimthinking: <beatgiant>

Thanks.

Jul-10-08  AAAAron: Steinitz harnessess all of his deep down power from the midst of his beard. And a swell beard it is indeed.
Sep-07-09  WhiteRook48: the revenge of steinitz
Nov-10-09  timothee3331: Ne4?? is the decisive mistake and it has been proved since Tarrasch-Von Scheve. After N takes pawn takes, the plan is to attack e4 with the pieces so to force f5 and then play f3 to open the g-file. Then the sacrifice played by Steinitz is nice.
Mar-11-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <timothee3331: Ne4?? is the decisive mistake and it has been proved since Tarrasch-Von Scheve. >

Don't believe everything you read. When I was just starting out, someone played ...Ne4 against me in a position like this. I knew about Tarrasch-Scheve, so I figured the game was in the bag...I got crushed. And ...Ne4 is still very much with us.

The funny thing is, in this game Lasker's "blunder" is preceded by Steinitz' c4-c5 -- and there are books that make that move sound like a decisive error too. But what do Steinitz and Lasker know? They're only the first and second world chess champions.

Oct-07-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  igiene: "Don't believe everything you read".
A very wise advice.
Oct-07-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  igiene: 4..Be7 is probably too slow after 4.Bf4, while is good after 4.Bg5. Perhaps is better 4..c5 to stop c5-advance by White, as suggested by Nunn
Feb-02-11  timothee3331: Well actually do not believe I am the one to believe everything I read. But clearly in this instance, the plan developped by Tarrasch applies straightforwardly. Strange you did not say a word about it, that was supposed to be the point of my comment....

And if you had studied the classics a little more, you would know that c5 has often been played and from very long ago when Black had already played a6... So here it may be an experiment, a strategic risk by Steinitz: Try the same structure in a less favourable instance

Feb-02-11  timothee3331: Then Of course if somebody is stupid enough to believe that White is winning for instance in the Lasker Defence or some other serious opening where the very same move occurs, that is another story...
Sep-23-11  Kasparovsky5: Steinitz had: 28.Bxh7 (Threatening:29.Bg6+,Kg8.30.Rh8#),Re7. 29.Be4+,Kg8.30.Rh8+,Kf7.31.R1h7+,Ke8.32.Bg6+,Rf7- .33.Bxf7+ mating.
Mar-24-12  LoveThatJoker: Guess-the-Move Final Score:

Steinitz vs Lasker, 1896.
YOU ARE PLAYING THE ROLE OF STEINITZ.
Your score: 65 (par = 53)

LTJ

Mar-28-12  Anderssen99: LoveThatJoker: Find a good line for Black after: 28.Bxh7! .
Jul-23-17  Toribio3: The bishop sacrifice on move 14 is a killer move. Beyond move 14, the situation of Black was already a disaster!
Jul-23-17  john barleycorn: game #8 in "the world's greatest chess games" (Burgess/Nunn/Emms) with fairly good annotation
Jun-13-23  DanLanglois: After 13. Bg3:


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Black plays 13...f4?:


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This is bunk, but the refutation is interesting. White's bishop is attacked on g3. Does white play 14. Bxf4 here? No. Black is okay against that.

14. Bxf4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5:


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Black has compensation for the pawn.

16. Bxe5 Qxe5


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Instead, as in the game, White plays 15. Qxe4!:


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Sacking the bishop.

14...fxg3 15. hxg3


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Of course this is White is threatening mate on h7.

15...g6 16. Qxg6


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White has plenty for the piece, can ponder Ne2-f4, can ponder g4, also Bd3.

Black's move here was perhaps not the best, he played 16...Bd7:


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Here White has options, such that 17. f4 which he played isn't the most interesting of them.

17. Qc2


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This is more flexible. White has three pawns for the piece.

Jun-18-23  Frits Fritschy: Instead of 14... fxg3, 14... e5 (suggested by my engine) looks interesting. After all, taking sacrificed pieces is not obligatory. The Bg3 is still attacked, and after 15 dxe5 Nxe5 16 exf4 Nxc4 17 Qxc4 Qe3+ 18 Kb1 the main point is easy to see: Bf5+ is simply winning. 15 exf4 exd4 16 Qxe7 Bxe7 seems perfectly playable, if not better for black.
Jun-18-23  Frits Fritschy: Also, 14... e5!? 15 d5 Qxc5 leads to a messy position in which I don't see a clear way for white to get an advantage. For instance 16 dxc6 Be6 17 cxb7 Rab8 18 Rd2 Qxc4+ 19 Qxc4 Bxc4 20 exf4 exf4 21 Bxf4 Rxb7 22 Ne2 Rfb8 with full compensation. And 16 b4 Nxb4 17 axb4 Qxb4 looks unplayable for white - the Bc8 very much wants to go to f5 at some point. Maybe 13... f4 was a brilliant move the engine missing Lasker didn't fully understand?
Jun-19-23  Frits Fritschy: 14... e5 15 exf4 exd4 16 Qxe7 Bxe7 17 b4 a5 18 b5 Na7 19 Rxd4? Bxc5 20 Rd3 Bf5 (again!) regains the pawn with advantage. 6 c5 seems with modern eyes a bit weird, and Lasker tried to profit from it with the undermining move 13... f4 - attack at the base! Maybe shocked by the piece sac, he failed to follow through.
Jan-27-24
Premium Chessgames Member
  GrahamClayton: Final position:


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Steinitz's 'V for Victory" pawn chain is very apt :-)

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