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Game of the Week XLVII Carlsen, Magnus (2855) – Nepomniachtchi, Ian (2782)

Game of the Week XLVII Carlsen,Magnus (2855) - Nepomniachtchi,Ian (2782)

“A Knight on f5 is worth a pawn”

Garry Kasparov

Kasparov made this statement because often, the Black side castles short. White’s knight then becomes quite annoying for Black and can create attacking ideas all the time.

What about the value of the knight on d6 or d3? If we consider that either the e or d file is often open and could be used by the enemy, having a knight on either of those squares could stop any rook activities and generally bother the opponent greatly. This knight on d3/d6 is often called the octopus knight. The historical Karpov-Kasparov game illustrates this idea in which Kasparov sacrificed the pawn in order to locate the knight on d3, ultimately helping him to win a beautiful game.

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Contributors:

Grandmaster Vasif Durarbayli

Edited by Della Almind

Vasif

Vasif Durarbayli is a highly accomplished Azerbaijani chess Grandmaster. He was born on February 24, 1992, in Sumgait, Azerbaijan, and began playing chess at the age of six. Durarbayli quickly showed a talent for the game, winning several national and international chess competitions as a young player. He holds the record for being the youngest player ever to represent the Azerbaijani Olympic chess team, achieving this feat at just 14 years old. To this day, his record has yet to be broken or renewed. He also won the World Youth Chess Championship U14 and the European Youth Chess Championship U18. He was awarded the title of International Master in 2007 at the age of 15 and became a Grandmaster in 2010, at the age of 18. Throughout his career, Durarbayli has competed in and won numerous prestigious chess tournaments, including the Azerbaijani Chess Championship twice (in 2021 and 2023). He was also ranked among the top 16 players in the World Cup in 2021. Durarbayli has represented Azerbaijan in several Chess Olympiads. Currently, he resides in St. Louis, MO.

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