Chapter Seven

Closed Catalan with 7

1 d4 f6 2 c4 e6 3 g3 d5 4 g2 e7 5
f3 0-0 6 0-0 bd7 7 c3
TheClosedCatalanwith7c3can
be reached via a number of different
moveorders,whichiswhythischapter
is quite important. Besides the regular
Catalanthereis,forexample,1d4d52
c4 e6 3 c3 f6 4 f3 e7 5 g3 00 6
g2bd7700.
Blacks setup appears to make per
fect sense against a knight on c3, be
causeitseemsthathecantrytotakethe
c4pawn and then defend his illgotten
gains with ...d7b6. White certainly
wouldnt want to play c4xd5, as after
...e6xd5Blackliberateshisc8bishop.
It turns out, however, that if Black
doestakeonc4,Whitecanobtaincom
pensationbyplayinge2e4andgettinga
broadpawncentre.InIvanisevicLepel
letier (Game 30) Black broke the centre
up with 8...c5, but this isveryriskybe
cause of 10 e5!?(ratherthan10exd5as
played in the game). In JirkaBrener

________
[rDb1W4kD]
[0p0ngp0p]
[WDWDphWD]
[DWDpDWDW]
[WDP)WDWD]
[DWHWDN)W]
[P)WDP)B)]
[$WGQDRIW]
c3W--------W

(Game 31) Black was successful in tak

ing on c4 and then hanging on to the
pawn, but White can play the middle
gamebetter,with14h3forexampleand
longtermpositionalcompensation.
White also has another approach
protecting the pawn with d1d3 be
fore Black takes it. I personally dont
likethismuchbecausethequeenseems
exposedond3.JozsefHorvathevident
ly disagrees (see Game 32, Horvath
Manole),butBauerTimofeev(Game33)
rather confirms my view. Once Ti
mofeev had a grip on the position it
seemed very difficult for White to do
anything,sothisisanargumentfor9e4.

Game 30
I.Ivanisevic-B.Lepelletier
French Team
Championship 2007

1 d4 f6 2 c4 e6 3 c3 d5 4 f3 e7 5
91

Play the Catalan

g3 0-0 6 g2 dxc4
6...bd7 7 00 c6 8 d3 will be ex
aminedinGames32and33.
7 0-0 bd7
Reaching a position that well be
dealing with via the move order 3 g3
d5 4 g2 e7 5 f3 00 6 00 bd7 7
c3dxc4.
8 e4 c5

W________W
[rDb1W4kD]
[0pDngp0p]
[WDWDphWD]
[DW0WDWDW]
[WDp)PDWD]
[DWHWDN)W]
[P)WDW)B)]
[$WGQDRIW]
W--------W
Trying to free his game rather than
hold onto the extra pawn. 8...c6 is ex
aminedinthenextgame.
9 d5
Someothermoves:
a) 9 e2?! cxd4 10 xd4 e5 11
d1 d3 12 e3 e5 13 f3 a5 was
good for Black in B.Khotenashvili
T.Gasparian,Tbilisi2007.
b) 9e5d510e4(itsdifficultto
believethat10xd5exd5wouldoffer
White enough play) 10...b5 11 dxc5
xc5 12 xc5 xc5 13 g5 e7 14
g4b815d1c7leftWhitestrug
gling to generate enough for hispawn
inM.BachF.Hegeler,Hamburg1997.
c)9f4!?isinteresting,forexample
9...cxd4(9...b610a4cxd411xd4a6
12a5bd713e5d514xd5exd515
92

f5 c5 16 xe7+xe717xd5was
better for White in M.Sorokin
E.Pigusov, Voronezh 1988) 10 xd4
b6 (instead 10...c5 11 xc4 d312
b4a513b6cxe414e5d6was
V.RagozinG.Levenfish,
Leningrad
1936, when 15 xd6 xd6 16 fd1
wouldhavekeptastronginitiativefor
the pawn, even in the endgame; while
after10...e511xe5xe512xe5e6
13 d5 d7 14 xe7+ xe7, as in
Nguyen Anh DungI.Csom Budapest
1999, 15 d6 would also have been
good for White) 11 e3 d3 was
V.RagozinA.Budo, Leningrad 1936,
and now 12 fd1 xe3 13 xe3 fol
lowed by d2 and f1 (as necessary)
would recover the pawn on c4 with a
slightlybetterendgame.
9...exd5
Black must be careful to avoid
9...b6?, which loses a piece to 10 d6
xd6 (or 10...xd6 11 xd6 xd6 12
e5)11e5etc.Quiteafewplayershave
fallenforthatone!
10 exd5
White has a dangerous alternative
herein10e5!?,

W________W
[rDb1W4kD]
[0pDngp0p]
[WDWDWhWD]
[DW0p)WDW]
[WDpDWDWD]
[DWHWDN)W]
[P)WDW)B)]
[$WGQDRIW]
W--------W

Closed Catalan with 7 c3

for example 10...g4 (10...e8 11

xd5 b6 12 e4 d3 is well met by
13 e3, as 13...xe4 14 xe4 d7 15
ac1 b5 16 fd1 gives White a strong
initiative) 11 xd5 b6 12 e4 (12
xd8!?xd813h3h614g4wasalso
promising for White in M.Czerniak
A.Lev, Israeli Ch. 1976, the game pro
ceeding14...f615a4f716e6xe617
e1 e5 18 xe5 fxe5 19 xe5 f7 20
a5 c8? 21 a6! with White winning
quickly)12...d3(12...f5shouldbean
swered by 13 f4, for example 13...h6
14h3g515xg5hxg516xg5xe5
17 a4! is a typical and strong idea) 13
h3 xe4 (13...h6 14 d1 xe4 15
xe4 e6 was R.Martin Canfran
A.Picanol Alamany, Barcelona 2001,
when 16 g5 fe8 17 xe7 xe7 18
xc5 d5 19 ac1 would have recov
eredthepawnwiththebettergame)14
xe4 h6 (14...f5 15 d6 h6 16
xb7 d3 was played in G.De Fotis
W.Browne,USOpen,Aspen1968,and
now17e1wouldhavesetBlackmore
problems) 15 e3 (15 g4!? is interest
ing,toshuttheknightonh6outofthe
game) 15...f5 16 xc5 a4 17 xe7
xe718b3b619d4andWhitehad
a strong initiative in A.Skripchenko
M.Congiu, French Womens Ch., Be
sancon2006.
10...b6
10...d611g5h612xf6xf613
d2e514xc4d415b5g416
d2xd517xd4cxd418xd4gave
White some pressure in A.OKelly de
GalwayG.Stoltz, Dortmund 1951, due
tothestrongCatalanbishopong2.
11 e5 d6 12 f4

W________W
[rDb1W4kD]
[0pDWDp0p]
[WhWgWhWD]
[DW0PHWDW]
[WDpDW)WD]
[DWHWDW)W]
[P)WDWDB)]
[$WGQDRIW]
W--------W
It doesnt seem as good to protect
the knight with 12 e1, for example
12...e8 13 f4 f5 14 h3 d3 15 xd3
cxd3 16 xe8+ xe8 17 xd3 e1+ 18
h2 c4 gave Black the initiative in
I.KanA.Kotov, USSR Ch., Leningrad
1939.
Its also worth pointing out that 12
f4?losesapieceto12...g5!,asthishas
beenplayedinatleastonegame!
12...e8 13 f3
This natural and aggressive move
seems to have been a novelty. Earlier
White focused on 13 a4, for example
13...a5 (13...xe5 14 fxe5 g4 15 e1!?
fxd5 16 a5 xc3 17 xc3 gave White
activeplayinB.NikcevicF.VanHasselt,
Paris1994)14b5(14h3h515f3c7
16 d2 d7 17 xd7 xd7 left Black
solid enough in K.MitonS.Zavgorod
niy,Moscow2002)14...xe5(14...f515
e1g416xg4xe1+17xe1xg4
18 d2 was better for White in
M.PeturssonM.Dutreeuw, San Bernar
dino1989)15fxe5xe516f4xd517
xd5bxd518c7e819e1c620
e5 wasnt clear in V.RagozinL.Ruda
kovsky,USSRCh.,Moscow1940.
93

Play the Catalan

13...xe5!?
This might be a bit of an overreac
tion,thoughBlackdoesgetsomecom
pensationhere.Movessuchas13...c7
and 13...d7 look solid enough, with
play along the lines of Miton
Zavgorodniy, given in the previous
note.
14 fxe5 xe5 15 h3 d7 16 f4 d4+
17 h2?!

W________W
[rDW1WDkD]
[0pDbDp0p]
[WhWDWhWD]
[DW0PDWDW]
[WDpgWGWD]
[DWHWDQ)P]
[P)WDWDBI]
[$WDWDRDW]
W--------W
Inviewofthepossiblereply,White
should have played 17 e3, when
17...e7 18 ae1 xc3 19 bxc3 fxd5
20g5!f8producesasharpposition
inwhichbothsideshavechances.
17...f8?!
It seems that both players might
have missed 17...fxd5 18 xd5 c6,
recoveringthepiecewithagoodgame
forBlack.
18 ae1 e8
Another possibility was 18...xc3
19 xc3 fxd5, for example 20 xd5
xd521xc4c6withtwopawnsfor
theexchangeandasolidenoughposi
tion.
19 g4 c8?!
19...xc320bxc3fxd5isstillquite
94

playable, and indeed probably Blacks

best. After the passive text Black
gradually drifts into an inferior posi
tion.
20 a4 b6 21 g3 a6 22 d6 xe1 23
xe1 e8 24 d5 h8?

W________W
[WDnDn1Wi]
[DWDbDp0p]
[p0W)WDWD]
[DW0NDWDW]
[PDpgWGPD]
[DWDWDW!P]
[W)WDWDBI]
[DWDW$WDW]
W--------W
ForbetterorworseBlackhadtogo
for 24...exd6, for example 25 xd6
xd6 26 xd6 xd6 27 xb6 e6
produces an endgame which is proba
bly tenable with accurate play. Now
Whitecrawlsintohisguts.
25 e7 a7?
After this Black is completely lost.
Thebestchancelayin25...g5!?26xg5
exd6, at least getting rid of Whites
passeddpawn.
26 e5
26 f3! intending 27 b7 seems
evenstronger.
26...f6 27 g5 e8
27...xe528xe5h529a5would
decisively undermine Blacks queen
sidepawns.
28 d5 1-0
Blackdoesnthaveanygoodmoves
andisthreatenedwith29f1,amongst
otherhorrors.