It is a blitz game.
11...Bg6 was a mistake as you lost both the bishop's pair and control over central square e4. You had to preserve the bishop's pair and keep control with 11...Bc2.
11...Bg6 was a mistake as you lost both the bishop's pair and control over central square e4. You had to preserve the bishop's pair and keep control with 11...Bc2.
8...axb6 is preferable because you activate your a8 rook and control the c5 square with a pawn, denying an important square. This move is also threatening to capture the c4 pawn on the next move and support it with the pawn on b6, and your b7 pawn protects your c6 pawn, making the fianchettoed bishop a not so impressive piece.
9...exd5 is preferable as well to keep control over e4 square, and together with your knight, light squared bishop and a rook coming to the e file, White is not likely to push that pawn to e4 at all, he would have to play e3 to support the d4 pawn and then use minority attack to isolate your d5 pawn or make c6 pawn backwards and a7 pawn isolated.
9...exd5 is preferable as well to keep control over e4 square, and together with your knight, light squared bishop and a rook coming to the e file, White is not likely to push that pawn to e4 at all, he would have to play e3 to support the d4 pawn and then use minority attack to isolate your d5 pawn or make c6 pawn backwards and a7 pawn isolated.
Thanks everyone
@Koo8384
When faced with a Queen showdown on the b-file, it is generally best not to take if doing so means the opponent can capture with the a-pawn towards the centre, thus giving the rook command of the now half-open a-file. White's 8.Qxb6 violated this bit of wisdom which 8...Nxb6 failed to take advantage of by 8...axb6 instead. Now the rook remains inactive and the knight inhibits its b-pawn. Not only is it more awkwardly and less harmoniously placed, it can be kicked away at will by White's c5 which will also seriously reduce Black's dark-squared bishop activity as well as grab queenside space. White's proper move was 8. c5.
After 8...Nxb6, White squandered the opportunity to play 9.c5 for aforementioned reasons, probably because following the principle of "trading a flank pawn for a central pawn". Like all principles, this shouldn't be followed blindly and must be tempered by the concrete considerations on the board. Black's best and most natural response would have been 9...exd5, gaining all-important central space by taking undisputed command of the centre as well as half-opening the e-file to its advantage and completely shutting down White's dsb at g2 which now faces a granite wall. Black's bishop pair would now have been much more active than White's, by the way.
I will leave others to comment on the continuation of the game but I hope these brief comments will have given you some useful insight for future games.
When faced with a Queen showdown on the b-file, it is generally best not to take if doing so means the opponent can capture with the a-pawn towards the centre, thus giving the rook command of the now half-open a-file. White's 8.Qxb6 violated this bit of wisdom which 8...Nxb6 failed to take advantage of by 8...axb6 instead. Now the rook remains inactive and the knight inhibits its b-pawn. Not only is it more awkwardly and less harmoniously placed, it can be kicked away at will by White's c5 which will also seriously reduce Black's dark-squared bishop activity as well as grab queenside space. White's proper move was 8. c5.
After 8...Nxb6, White squandered the opportunity to play 9.c5 for aforementioned reasons, probably because following the principle of "trading a flank pawn for a central pawn". Like all principles, this shouldn't be followed blindly and must be tempered by the concrete considerations on the board. Black's best and most natural response would have been 9...exd5, gaining all-important central space by taking undisputed command of the centre as well as half-opening the e-file to its advantage and completely shutting down White's dsb at g2 which now faces a granite wall. Black's bishop pair would now have been much more active than White's, by the way.
I will leave others to comment on the continuation of the game but I hope these brief comments will have given you some useful insight for future games.
8.- Nxb6 is a mistake. 8.- axb6 is better.
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