Positional game analysis

WS83

Hi all,
When Ive played up until now Ive mostly been trying to win with tactics. Heard players talk about positional play and making anti-positional moves etc and it was always kind of abstract. I read a bit about it and have been trying to win with those concepts. Problem is that its very easy with engine analysis to understand missed tactics, but with positional play its more difficult. This game went well, engine doesnt think Im an idiot, but there were mistakes and I was hoping someone could explain why they were mistakes and make give a couple of pointers about the game overall. Thanks!

https://lichess.org/qD4Lg912Gt0T

Hi all, When Ive played up until now Ive mostly been trying to win with tactics. Heard players talk about positional play and making anti-positional moves etc and it was always kind of abstract. I read a bit about it and have been trying to win with those concepts. Problem is that its very easy with engine analysis to understand missed tactics, but with positional play its more difficult. This game went well, engine doesnt think Im an idiot, but there were mistakes and I was hoping someone could explain why they were mistakes and make give a couple of pointers about the game overall. Thanks! https://lichess.org/qD4Lg912Gt0T

dnowmects

I'm no expert on the English, but your opponent's 3.c6 stands out to me; that's typically the ideal square for that knight, and in the game that knight takes a lot of wrangling to get back into play.

Both of your inaccuracies are about that knight; 15. Nd4 would have guarded the b3 square, leaving a c5 black knight nowhere to go but backward after a b4 pawn push. Then your 17. Ne4 is allowing the black knight to go back to c5, either forcing a trade or forcing you to jump to d2 for b3's defense, which jams you up. B4 there instead would cut off the knight from going to c5 again, while your bishop is stopping it from advancing anywhere else.

I think the computer's 15. ...Nf6 recommendation is about preparing for a pawn push on d5; the knight jumps in, a rook goes behind it and they start to have enough pieces to win there.

...d5 has a few advantages over Nf6; attacking white's knight either forces it away and gives black safety on f6, or trades knights with a possible bishop entrapment if it doesn't retreat immediately, and getting that pawn off d6 finally lets black's c7 bishop do anything at all. It breaks the queenside pawn formation, but the king's safety is more valuable.
...d5 is obvious enough, black doesn't have the pieces to win the exchange.
...Bd8 is about preventing that rook move.

I'm no expert on the English, but your opponent's 3.c6 stands out to me; that's typically the ideal square for that knight, and in the game that knight takes a lot of wrangling to get back into play. Both of your inaccuracies are about that knight; 15. Nd4 would have guarded the b3 square, leaving a c5 black knight nowhere to go but backward after a b4 pawn push. Then your 17. Ne4 is allowing the black knight to go back to c5, either forcing a trade or forcing you to jump to d2 for b3's defense, which jams you up. B4 there instead would cut off the knight from going to c5 again, while your bishop is stopping it from advancing anywhere else. I think the computer's 15. ...Nf6 recommendation is about preparing for a pawn push on d5; the knight jumps in, a rook goes behind it and they start to have enough pieces to win there. 18. ...d5 has a few advantages over Nf6; attacking white's knight either forces it away and gives black safety on f6, or trades knights with a possible bishop entrapment if it doesn't retreat immediately, and getting that pawn off d6 finally lets black's c7 bishop do anything at all. It breaks the queenside pawn formation, but the king's safety is more valuable. 22. ...d5 is obvious enough, black doesn't have the pieces to win the exchange. 27. ...Bd8 is about preventing that rook move.

derkleineJo

edited

@WS83 One "positional" theme catched my eye very early in this opening sequence:

When black played 3. ...c6, he usually wants to follow up with 4. ...d5, building up a big centre. If white would then take with 5. cxd5 and black would take back by playing 5. ...cxd5, then black would be left with 2 strong pawns in the centre, which lots of english-players don't like/may lead to problems later on. This is the reason for white often preferring 4. d4 (which is also the main move in the masters database) over any other move in this position.

Luckily your opponent just played some "schematic moves" like you, too - so nothing happened. This may be your chance to break from schematic thinking and dive deeper into the subtelities of chess.

Bye and good luck on your lifelong chess journey.

@WS83 One "positional" theme catched my eye very early in this opening sequence: When black played 3. ...c6, he usually wants to follow up with 4. ...d5, building up a big centre. If white would then take with 5. cxd5 and black would take back by playing 5. ...cxd5, then black would be left with 2 strong pawns in the centre, which lots of english-players don't like/may lead to problems later on. This is the reason for white often preferring 4. d4 (which is also the main move in the masters database) over any other move in this position. Luckily your opponent just played some "schematic moves" like you, too - so nothing happened. This may be your chance to break from schematic thinking and dive deeper into the subtelities of chess. Bye and good luck on your lifelong chess journey.

swimmerBill

Only positional 'error' I saw was Ng5 not Nd4 and it was minor.

Computer preferred Nd4 because--I'm guessing-- it expected Nc5 (attacking b3 and with the idea if you played b4, then Na4 , exchange knights and pressure the backward a pawn) and Nd4 protected the b pawn. It can also be more general- like the game will be decided on the queenside not the kingside so d4 is better then g5.

But this was minor and black missed the idea anyway. Otherwise, you jumped on black's errors (positionally) and didn't let up.

IMO at least, Bill

Only positional 'error' I saw was Ng5 not Nd4 and it was minor. Computer preferred Nd4 because--I'm guessing-- it expected Nc5 (attacking b3 and with the idea if you played b4, then Na4 , exchange knights and pressure the backward a pawn) and Nd4 protected the b pawn. It can also be more general- like the game will be decided on the queenside not the kingside so d4 is better then g5. But this was minor and black missed the idea anyway. Otherwise, you jumped on black's errors (positionally) and didn't let up. IMO at least, Bill

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