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Francisco Vallejo Pons vs Veselin Topalov
XIX Ciudad de Leon (2006) (rapid), Leon ESP, rd 1, Jun-10
Sicilian Defense: Kan. Knight Variation (B43)  ·  1-0

8
7
6
5
4
3
2
a
1
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
White to move.
ANALYSIS [x]
1-0

rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1
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Kibitzer's Corner
Jun-10-06  hellopolgar: Topalov played cool by not taking the knight. then got into trouble. nothing to see here, move along
Jun-10-06  blingice: It's surprising he missed that. Maybe just keeping it simple is optimal?
Jun-10-06  notsodeepthought: As noted by chessbase.com, by the time this game was played, Topalov had already won the match since he had 2.5 points. So he could afford to try something silly (and paid the price).
Jun-10-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  sisyphus: This is revenge.

6.g4!? seems typical of Vallejo; aggressive and risky. 10... Nc8!? was probably a better choice for Topalov, since 10... Ne5?! allows 11.Bxe5! Also 12.Rxd8? was inferior to 12.Kxd8, since after 13.Nc5 there are many traps for Black. 15...Nd4 would have created more resistance than 15...b4? Finally, 17.Bb5! creates a decisive advantage.

And thanks to GM Miguel Illescas and IM Michael Rahal whose analysis I plagiarized.

Jun-10-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  sisyphus: <hellopolgar: Topalov played cool by not taking the knight.>

If 14... Rxb7 15.a4 bxa4 16. Bxa6, etc.

Jun-11-06  babakova: 6.g4 is nothing special, basically a transposed Keres attack.
Jun-11-06  pyryk: <babakova> 6.g4 is a bit unusual - Black hasn't played Nf6 so the g-pawn isn't really threatening anything.
Jun-11-06  euripides: <10... Nc8!? was probably a better choice for Topalov, since 10... Ne5?! allows 11.Bxe5! > 10...Ng6 looks interesting.
Jun-11-06  babakova: <Black hasn't played Nf6 so the g-pawn isn't really threatening anything.> I think that is rather one sided. I do not think developing the knight to e7 is a big hit anyway. Topalov might as well just play the knight to f6, allow g5 and play the main lines. Therefore, I think, 6.g4 was nothing special.
Jun-11-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  Peligroso Patzer: After 15. ... b4? (a plausible move at first glance, but actually a significant blunder), Black was lost. Essential here was 15. ... Nd4, with some advantage for White.
Jun-21-06  alexandrovm: terrible blunder, can happen some times to anyone...
Jun-22-07  argishti: This is what happens when players get fancy...

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