Tournaments↓

R.Robson (USA) - A.Grigoryan (Armenia)

 RSSU Student Grandmaster Cup

Round 1

French deffence. Winawer variation

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 Ne7 5. a3 B:c3 6. bc c5 7. Qg4 O-O

This popular variation first appeared in Shaposhnikov – Boleslavskiy game (Sverdlovsk,1951). I. Boleslavskiy used to comment: "This move hadn’t been used at the tournaments, though it was more reasoned than sacrificing pawns "g" and "h". White is not eased in the attack as it seems". 8. Bd3 Nbc6 9. Qh5 Ng6
[Answering to 9... h6 comes a hardest strike in Oll – Ulybin game (Tbilisi 1989): 10. B:h6! gh 11. Q:h6 Nf5 12. B:f5 ef 13. Nh3 f6 14. Qg6 Kh8 (White is supposed to force a draw) 15. O-O-O! fe 16. Rd3 f4 17. Qh6 Kg8 18. Rg3! fg 19. Qg6 Kh8 20. hg]
10. Nf3 Threatening 11.Ng5 h6 12.N:f7. 10... Qc7 Defending f7 and counterattacking - 11...cd 12.cd Nd4. 11. Be3 Threatening again 12.Ng5, and Black closes center. 11... c4 12. B:g6 After 12.Be2 f6 Black has no problem. 12... fg 13. Qg4

Black Queen side seems inaccessible but White has strengths to attack - h2-h4-h5. 13... Qf7 Armenian chess-players’ favorite continuation. Black Queen defenses queen side and even moves to f5. Exchanging Queens eliminates all the threats to Black King. Alternative is quick mobilization of Queen side - 13...Bd7 14.h4 Rf5. 14. Ng5 Qe8 Now to 14...Qf5 goes 15.Qå2. 15. h4

15... b5 Black organizes diversionary maneuovre at Queen side, connected with a7-a5 è b5-b4.
[Curiously the same position appeared in Armenian Grandmaster’ practice in White last year! In the game A.Grigoryan - Apicella (France 2011) followed: 15... h6 16. Nh3 Bd7 17. Qe2 b5 18. g4 a5 19. h5 gh 20. g5 hg 21. N:g5 g6 22. Kd2 b4 23. Rag1 bc 24. K:c3 Rf5 25. Nf3 Rb8 26. Nh4]
16. h5 Apparently something new.
[In the game Li Chao - A.Grigoryan (Argentina 2009) was:16. Qe2 Bd7 17. g4 (More intense 17. h5!? h6 18. Nh3 gh 19. g4!? (or 19. Nf4 R:f4! 20. B:f4 Qf7 21. Be3 Be8 22. g4 hg 23. Q:g4 Qg6 24. Qe2 Ne7 with strong position for Black, Ruan Lufei - L.Mkrtychan (Yekaterinburg, 2006)) 19... Qg6 20. g5 hg 21. N:g5 Be8 22. O-O-O a5 with uncertain play, Potkin - A.Rychagov, Irkutsk 2010) 17... Qe7 18. f4 Be8 19. Kd2 a5 20. Qg2 h6 21. Nf3 Rb8 22. h5 gh 23. f5 ef 24. gf R:f5 25. Nh4 Rf7 26. Ng6 Qe6 27. R:h5 Kh7 28. Rg1 Rf2 29. Q:f2 B:g6 30. Rh2 Ne7 31. Rhg2 b4 Black makes good counter play.]
16... h6 17. Nf3 Ne7 In case of 17...g5 there are lots of options for position sacrifice of piece on g5. 18. Kd2 a5 19. hg Q:g6 20. Q:g6 N:g6

Seems that exchanging Queens gives Black complete security. Though American Grandmaster prepares a piece sacrifice in endgame!21. B:h6! gh 22. R:h6 Kg7 23. Rah1

A chance to invade White rooks on file "h" and move Knight to g5 gives White a compensation for the piece. After Kå3 White pawns "f" è "g" can move forward. Black has difficult challanges.  23... Rf7 24. Ke3 b4 25. Ng5 Rf5 26. Rh7 Kg8 27. R7h5 Strengthening Knight g5 position White plans Queen side pawns to move. 27... Ra7
[No good 27... ba 28. g4 Rf8 29. Rh6]
28. g4 Rf4 29. f3
[Or 29. Rh6 Rg7 30. R:g6 R:g4 31. R:g7 K:g7 32. Nh7, but the move in the game is more accurate.]
29... ba 30. Rh6 Rg7 31. R:g6 R:f3 32. K:f3 R:g6

The key factor now is White Knight superiority over the “French” Bishop. 33. Nh7! Knight moving to f6 and pawn "g" progression creates mate threat to Black King. Black Pawn vertical "a" cannot compensate the global disadvantage33... Rg7 34. Nf6 Kf7 35. Kf4 Kg6 36. Ra1 Ra7 37. R:a3 a4 38. g5 Bd7 39. Ra1 a3 40. Kg4 White makes mate attack.
[Early is 40. N:d7 R:d7 41. R:a3 Rf7]
40... Bc8

41. Rh1 Rg7 42. Nh5 Rb7 43. Nf4 Kg7 44. Ra1 Ra7 45. g6 Invasion of White King to g5 and of Knight to f6 is unavoidable. Yet follows: 45... a2 46. Kg5 Bd7 47. Nh5 Kg8 48. Kh6 Be8 49. Nf6 Kf8 50. R:a2 R:a2 51. g7 Could White go defensive after White sacrificed a piece? Only deep analysis can answer this question. [1:0]