From Rags to Stars

Professor Mauro Berni (Genoa, Italy) shared some pages from an article by Valdo Eynard, “Božo Filipović”, published in Informazione Scacchi, Year VII, No. 2, March/April 1997, pp. 73–76. Among the many illustrious victims of Filipović was International Master Alberto Mario Giustolisi who, as Berni notes, “did very badly at the 7th Italian Team Chess Championship in Monticelli Terme (2 out of 7), but a few months later he won the 27th Italian Chess Championship in Rovigo”.
Here is the game, with my light notes.

Alberto Mario Giustolisi – Božidar Filipović
7th Italian Team Chess Championship; Monticelli Terme, April 1966
King’s Indian Defence E97

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6. Nf3 e5 7. 0-0 Nc6 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bc1 Nh6 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Be3 Qxd1 13. Raxd1. If 13. Rfxd1 then 13. ... Be6 14. Nd5 Rf7 15. h3 Bf8 16. g4 g5 17. Rac1 Kg7 18. c5 Nd8 19. Nh2 c6 20. Nc3 Ng8 21. Nf1 Rd7 22. Ng3 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Kf7 24. Nf5 Ke8 25. b3 Nf7 26. Na4 Rd8 27. Rxd8+ Kxd8 28. Nb2 Be7 29. Bc4 ½–½ Wl. Schmidt – Pokojowczyk, 35th Polish Chess Championship, Kraków 1978.
13. ... Be6 14. Nd5 Rac8?! Proper seems 14. ... Rf7 15. b4 Nd8 followed by ... c7-c6.
15. b4! Bxd5 16. cxd5 Nxb4

17. Bc5?! White misses here a consequential opportunity to make his opponent’s defence much more difficult with 17. Rd2! threatening both Be3-c5 and a2-a3.
17. ... Nxa2 18. Rd3. After 18. Bxf8 Nc3 19. Bxg7 Nxe2+ 20. Kh1 Kxg7 Black, with two Pawns for the Exchange and two passed Pawns on the Queenside, should manage to hold his own.
18. ... b6 19. Bxf8 Bxf8 20. Ra1 Nb4 21. Rc3 a5 22. Bb5 Bd6 23. Bd7 Rd8 24. Be6+ Kf8 25. Nd2 Na6 26. Nc4 Bb4 27. Rf3 Kg7 28. g4 Nc5 29. g5 fxg5 30. Nxe5 Nxe6 31. dxe6 Re8 32. Rc1 Bd6

33. Nd3? A sloppy mistake by an out of form Giustolisi, which throws away the game. The critical line was 33. Nd7! Rxe6 34. e5! Rxe5! 35. Nxe5 Bxe5∞ when Black has two Echanges down but four Pawns up.
33. ... Ng4 34. Rf7+ Kg8 35. e5 Nxe5 36. Nxe5 Bxe5 37. Rc6 Bd6 38. Rd7 Rxe6 39. Rdxc7 Re1+ 40. Kg2 Bxc7 41. Rxc7 Re4 0–1.

Stuck in the Sixties

Alberto Mario Giustolisi – Giorgio Porreca
25th Italian Chess Championship; Naples, August 1964
Sicilian Defence B30

Notes by International Master Francesco Scafarelli, Ajedrez Español, No. 1, January 1965, pp. 36-37.

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 bxc6 5. 0-0 d5? A move that has the disadvantage of weakening the c-Pawn.

6. Qe2! e6. If 6. ... Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 8. g4.
7. d3 Bd6 8. b3 Ne7 9. e5. Better than 9. Bb2 right away, which would be answered by 9. ... f6!.
9. ... Bb8 10. Ba3 Qa5. Against 10. ... Ba7 there would simply follow 11. Nc3 and 12. Nc3-a4.
11. Qe1 Qxe1 12. Rxe1 c4 13. dxc4 dxc4 14. bxc4. The alternative 14. Bxe7 Kxe7 15. Nbd2 was interesting, since the Black Bishops would be blocked.
14. ... f6 15. Nc3 Ng6

16. Bd6 Nxe5. 16. ... Bxd6 17. exd6 e5 offers greater resistance, although after 18. c5 White’s advantage is evident.
17. Bxe5 fxe5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Rxe5 0-0 20. Rb1 Ra7 21. Ne4 Rc7 22. c5 Kf7 23. Nd6+ Ke7 24. Rb4 Bd7 25. h4 Be8 26. Re3 Bg6 27. Rg4 Rg8 28. c4 Rd7 29. Ra3 Ra7 30. Rgg3 Kd7 31. Rgb3 Kc7 32. Rb6 Bc2 33. Re3 Kd7 34. Rf3 Bg6 35. Rfb3 Ke7 36. Rxc6 1–0. Excellent positional play by the new Champion in this game.

Rome–Naples Direttissima

Professor Mauro Berni (Genoa, Italy) sent me today from his historical paper archive a not-yet-known (at least in Italy) game by International Master Alberto Mario Giustolisi from the 25th Italian Chess Championship (Naples, August 20-30, 1964), which was originally published in Ajedrez Español, No. 1, January 1965, p. 37.
Here it is, with my light annotations.

Alberto Mario Giustolisi – Giuseppe Primavera
25th Italian Chess Championship; Naples, August 1964
Pirc Defence B07

1. d4 Nf6 2. g3 d6 3. Bg2 g6 4. e4 Bg7 5. Ne2 0-0 6. h3. Or 6. 0-0 e5 7. Nbc3 exd4 8. Nxd4 Nbd7 9. h3⩲ with a slight edge for White, Giustolisi – Palmiotto, 27th Italian Chess Championship, Rovigo 1966.
6. ... e5 7. Nbc3 Nc6 8. Be3 Re8 9. 0-0 Bd7. This is strategically critical, as it hands White a clear space advantage. 9. ... exd4 10. Nxd4 Bd7 seems to be preferable.
10. d5! Ne7 11. Qd2 Qc8 12. Kh2

12. ... Nh5? A useless move that serves no purpose but to leave White free hand in the carrying on of his Kingside crescendo. 12. ... b5!? 13. b4 c6!? was at least worth a try.
13. g4! Nf6 14. Ng3 Kh8 15. f4! exf4 16. Rxf4 Rf8 17. Raf1 Neg8 18. Bd4 Qd8 19. g5 Nh5 20. Nxh5 gxh5 21. Rxf7 Rxf7 22. Rxf7 Be5+ 23. Bxe5+ dxe5 24. Qf2 Be8 25. Rf5 Bg6

26. Qg3! Qd6. If 26. ... Bxf5 then 27. Qxe5+ Nf6 28. gxf6 Qd6 29. Qxd6 cxd6 30. exf5 with an easy win.
27. Nb5 Qe7 28. Rxe5 Qg7 29. h4 h6 30. Nd4 1–0.

A Day in the Life of a Dentist

The then two-time Italian Chess Champion Vincenzo Castaldi conducts a simultaneous exhibition against 32 opponents in Turin, 1942, winning twenty-six, drawing one and losing five.

Five-Minute Blackout

Daniela Movileanu – Olga Zimina
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 10, 2017
6r1/kp3R2/p7/3R4/1b4P1/4Np1r/5P1P/6K1 w - - 4 43

Olga Zimina won the 44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship held in Cosenza, Italy ahead of Marina Brunello on tie-break – blitz games decided the title. In her last-round game against Daniela Movileanu, however, Zimina went very near to miss her coveted tie-break. 43. Rdd7! Rb8! 43. ... Bc5 44. Rxb7+ Ka8 45. Rb3 Bxe3 46. Rxe3 Rxg4+ 47. Kh1 Rg8 48. Rexf3 Rxf3 49. Rxf3 Kb7 only results in a drawn ending, so it’s understandable that Zimina – who needs to win at all costs – aims for a double-edged equality. 44. Nc4 a5 45. Ne5 Ka6 46. Nxf3 Rf8 47. Rxf8 Bxf8 48. Kg2 Rh8 49. g5 a4 50. Nd4 Bc5 51. Ne6 Bb4. Black is a Pawn down, but her duo of passers seems to run more quickly than White’s triad (for instance: 52. f4? a3!). 52. g6!? Maybe even White is playing to win, who knows. Simpler appears to be 52. Rd4(!) Ka5 (idem to say 52. ... Kb5 53. Rd7 Ka6 54. Rd4) 53. Rd5+ Kb6 54. Rd4 implying a draw by repetition. 52. ... Rg8 53. g7 Bc3. That’s the most Black has – probably not enough. 54. Rd8?? But Movileanu blunders away the game. 54. Nc5+? was not good as well, since after 54. ... Kb5! 55. Ne6 Kb6! White is in trouble (if 56. Rd3 then 56. ... Bb2). The right way seems, however, 54. Rf7(!) b5 55. Kf3 (55. Rf8?? loses to 55. ... Rxg7+!) with very good drawing chances; for instance: 55. ... a3 (55. ... Bxg7!? 56. Nxg7 a3 57. Ne6 Rc8 58. Nd4! a2 59. Nxb5 Kxb5 60. Ra7 Rc2 61. h4 Kb4! also draws) 56. Rf8! Rxg7 57. Nxg7 Ka7! 58. Ne6 a2 59. Nc7! and White should draw. 54. ... Rxd8 0 : 1. For after 55. Nxd8 Bxg7 56. Ne6 a3 the a-Pawn queens.

Lucky Luke versus Pat Poker

Danyyil Dvirnyy – Sabino Brunello
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 10, 2017
r2b2k1/p2br1pp/2p3q1/3pBpN1/3P1P1Q/6R1/P5PP/2R4K w - - 8 30

Position after 29. ... Bb6-d8

Luca Moroni has deservedly won (for the first time) the 77th Italian Chess Championship held in Cosenza, Italy which was aimed at rebuilding a reputation for the whole Italian chess movement after the accusations of unfair business practices apparently perpetrated by “a few rotten apples” which, however, lay in a basket in which the unfair business practices are a dogma of teachings. Only time will tell whether the “crocodile tears” have filled the sea. Getting back to the board, Moroni’s victory was helped by the two-time Italian Chess Champion Danyyil Dvirnyy (a direct contender to the title), who, in a win–win situation against Sabino Brunello, ended up completely losing control: 30. Ne4?? Blundering a piece! Probably best was 30. Nf3(!) and after 30. ... Rxe5(!) 31. Qh3 Re4 32. Rxg6 hxg6 33. Qg3 Be8 34. Rb1 White stands better, but a win is anything but granted. 30. ... Rxe5! 31. Qh3 fxe4 32. Qxd7 Re7! 0–1.

Half Step Up

Marina Brunello – Maria Palma
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 9, 2017
Sicilian Defence B40

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. Qd3. Theory runs 6. e5 Nd5 7. Bd2 (or 7. Qg4) with plenty of complications as in most lines Black sacrifices the Exchange on f8 for a counter-attack on the dark squares. Brunello’s move shows that she was not ready to undertake the challenge. 6. ... 0-0. 6. ... Nc6 7. Nxc6 bxc6 8. e5 Nd5 9. f4 f5 is also satisfactory for Black, Walbrodt – Schiffers, Internationales Kaiser-Jubiläums-Schachturnier, Vienna 1898. 7. e5 Nd5 8. Bd2 d6 9. exd6 Qxd6 10. g3 Nc6 11. Bg2 Rd8 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Ne4 Qc7 14. Bxb4 Nxb4 15. Qb3 Rb8 16. 0-0 c5. Black seems to have equalised – more or less. 17. Rfd1 Bb7 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 19. a3 Bd5 20. c4 Bxe4 21. axb4 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Qb7+ 23. Qf3 Qc7? Really bad judgment as this loses the game. Instead 23. ... Qxb4 24. Rxa7 Rf8 25. b3 Qb8 appears to lead to an approximately equal endgame.

24. b5! Now White’s heavy calibers should not meet too many difficulties in dooming Black’s weak Pawns on a7 and c5. 24. ... g6 25. Ra6 Kg7 26. b3. 26. Qa3 eventually followed by Ra6-c6 seemed stronger. 26. ... Rd4 27. Qc6? 27. Rc6 Qe7 28. Rc8 would have kept the bind. 27. ... Qe5. Not 27. ... Qxc6+? because of 28. dxc6 Rd8 29. Ra5 and White must win. 28. Rxa7 Qf5? 28. ... Rd3! followed by ... Rd3xb3 would have probably saved Black. 29. Qf3! Qxf3+ 30. Kxf3 Rd3+ 31. Ke4 Rxb3 32. Rc7 Rb2 33. Rxc5 Rxf2 34. b6 1 : 0.

The Unpredictable Certainty

Alberto David – Luca Moroni
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 9, 2017
Spanish Game C78

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. Nxe5 Nxe5 9. d4 Bxd4 10. Qxd4 d6 11. Bf4 0-0 12. f3 c5 13. Qd2 c4 14. Ba2 Be6. Moroni is not interested in repeating 14. ... Qb6+ 15. Be3 Qc7 which, however, after 16. axb5 axb5 17. Nc3 b4 18. Ne2 b3 19. Bb1 bxc2 20. Qxc2 d5 21. Ra7 Rb7 led him to quite a balanced game, Hráček – Moroni, 18th European Individual Chess Championship, Minsk 2017. 15. Nc3 b4 16. Ne2 b3 17. Bb1 bxc2. Not 17. ... Ng6 18. cxb3 Rxb3 19. Nd4 Qb6? as after 20. a5 Qa7 21. Be3 Black was forced to give up the Exchange for no worthy compensation, Vocaturo – Moroni, 19th Open Internacional d’Escacs de Sants, Hostafrancs i la Bordeta, Barcelona 2017. Finally, Grandmaster Aleksander Delchev’s suggestion 17. ... Qe7 18. c3 Rbd8 19. Nd4 Bd7 deserves practical tests. 18. Bxc2 Ng6!? That’s a novelty. Probably Moroni did not like 18. ... Rxb2 19. Rfb1 Rxb1+ 20. Rxb1 Qc7 21. Rd1 which, at the cost of a Pawn, leaves White with the Bishop pair and a better position, Topalov – Nakamura, 3rd Norway Chess, Stavanger 2015. 19. Be3 d5 20. e5!? Quite an interesting Pawn sac which might not be improvisation. 20. ... Nxe5 21. Nd4 Rb7 22. Rfe1 Bd7 23. Rad1 Re8 24. Bf2 a5 25. Qc3 Ng6 26. Rxe8+ Bxe8 27. Nf5 Bd7? So far, the game was dynamically balanced, but no longer after this bad error by Moroni. After ... Ng6-f4-e6 everything was fine for Black.

28. Rxd5! Rb4 29. Rd2. Here there were also other moves – possibly sharper – to be considered, such as 29. Qd4 and 29. Rd6, but David, who was already short of time, quite rightly prefers to play safely. 29. ... Qe8 30. Nd6 Qe6 31. Bf5 Qe7 32. Bxd7 Qxd7. Not 32. ... Nxd7? because of 33. Nf5 Qe5 34. Rxd7 Qxf5 35. Rd8+ Nf8 36. Qd2 and Black can resign. 33. Nxc4 Qc8 34. b3 Nf4 35. Qe3? David pays the price for his time shortage. After 35. Qc2! followed by the capture of the Pawn on a5 Black would have been left with nothing to hope for. 35. ... N6d5 36. Qc5 Qxc5 37. Bxc5 Rxb3 38. g3 Nd3 39. Nxa5 Rb1+ 40. Kg2 Rb2. The time control is reached and by now the game is manifestly drawn. 41. Rxb2 Nxb2 42. Bd4 ½ : ½.

The earth is round

Luca Moroni – Michele Godena
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 8, 2017
1B6/1R4p1/2p1k3/2P2pP1/3Pp3/P7/5nPK/2r5 w - - 0 50

Position after 49. ... Nd3xf2

As for the position in the diagram White has a Pawn more, but it’s obvious that Black’s passed e-Pawn more than compensate for it. Black is actually threatening ... e4-e3. 50. Rxg7? A mistake that might have cost Moroni very dearly. Correct was 50. Kg3 Rf1 (if 50. ... e3 then 51. Kf3 Ng4 52. Bg3 Rf1+ 53. Ke2 likewise with a draw) 51. d5+! Kxd5 52. Rxg7 e3 53. Rd7+ Ke6 54. Rd6+ Ke7 55. Kf3 with at least a draw for White. 50. ... e3 51. Bd6 f4 52. g4!? Desperation! If, however, 52. Bxf4 then 52. ... e2 53. Bd2 Ne4 54. Bb4 Rc3! with an easy win. 52. ... Nxg4+? Godena – who, as usual, played most of the game only on increment – misses here the “easy” 52. ... Ne4! which would have won at once; for instance: 53. Re7+ Kd5 54. Bxf4 Rc2+ (but not 54. ... e2? because of 55. Bd2! Nxd2 56. Rxe2) 55. Kg1 e2 and game over. 53. Kg2 Kf5 54. Rf7+ Kg6 55. Re7 Kxg5 56. Rg7+ Kf5 57. Rf7+ Kg6 58. Rxf4 e2 59. Rxg4+ Kh5? Maybe it would have not been enough for a win, but certainly 59. ... Kf5 would have saved time and also cost something to his opponent. 60. Re4 e1=Q 61. Rxe1 Rxe1. That’s all: Black ends up reaching a drawn Rook and Pawn vs. Bishop and two Pawns ending. I’m not so sure it would have been drawn if only Godena had played 59. ... Kf5 instead of 59. ... Kh5. 62. Kf3 Kg5 63. Bg3 Rd1 64. Ke4 Kf6 65. a4 Ra1 66. Be5+ Ke6 67. Kd3 Kd5 68. Kc3 Rxa4 69. Kb3 Rc4 70. Bf6 Rc1. Or 70. ... Rxd4 71. Bxd4 Kxd4 72. Kb4 Kd5 73. Kb3 Kxc5 74. Kc3 with a dead draw, eventually till stalemate – just like in the actual game. 71. Kb4 Rb1+ 72. Ka5 Kc4 73. Be5 Rb5+ 74. Ka6 Kd5 75. Bf6 Rb4 76. Ka5 Rb1 77. Ka6 Rb3 78. Ka5 Rf3 79. Be5 Rb3 80. Bf6 Rb5+ 81. Ka6 Rb4 82. Ka5 Rxd4 83. Bxd4 Kxd4 84. Kb4 Kd5 85. Kb3 Kxc5 86. Kc3 Kd5 87. Kd3 c5 88. Kc3 c4 89. Kc2 Kd4 90. Kd2 c3+ 91. Kc2 Kc4 92. Kc1 Kd3 93. Kd1 c2+ 94. Kc1 Kc3 stalemate.

G+

Marina Brunello – Désirée Di Benedetto
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 7, 2017
Sicilian Defence B49

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be3 a6 7. Be2 b5 8. Nxc6 dxc6. The alternative is 8. ... Qxc6; for instance: 9. a3 Bb7 10. Qd2 Rc8 11. 0-0 Nf6 12. Bf3 Qc7 13. Bf4 e5 14. Bg5 Be7 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Rfd1 Rd8 17. Qe2 0-0 18. Nd5 Qc4 19. c3 Bc6 20. Qc2 Bg5 21. g3 g6 22. h4 Bh6 23. Be2 Qc5 24. b4 Qa7 25. a4 Qb7 26. axb5 axb5 27. Qb3 Kg7 28. Bf3 f5 29. exf5 gxf5 30. Bg2 f4 31. Be4 fxg3 32. fxg3 Be3+ 33. Kh1 Bf2 34. Rd3 Kh8 35. Qc2 Rf7 36. Qe2 Rg8 37. Rf1 Rgf8 38. Qh5 Rg7 39. Qe2 Rgf7 40. Kg2 Ba7 41. Rxf7 Rxf7 42. Qh5 d6 43. Kh2 Qd7 44. Rf3 Qe6 45. Qxf7 1 : 0 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Potkin, Eurasian Blitz Chess Cup, Almaty 2016. 9. f4 Bb7 10. Bf3 Be7. If 10. ... e5 then 11. fxe5 Qxe5 12. Bd4 Qg5 13. Qe2 and White stands better, Bologan – Morozevich, World Rapid Chess Championship, Berlin 2015. Maybe 10. ... Nf6 is the best option Black has; for instance: 11. e5 Nd5 12. Nxd5 cxd5 13. Bd4 Be7 14. 0-0 0-0 ½ : ½ Kosanović – Hulak, Pula 1990. 11. e5. For 11. Qe2 Rd8 12. 0-0 e5 see Riazantsev – Grachev, 67th Russian Chess Championship Higher League, Vladivostok 2014. 11. ... Nh6 12. Ne4 Nf5 13. Bc5 Rd8. 13. ... Bxc5 14. Nxc5 Rd8 15. Qe2 transposes into the game. 14. Qe2 Bxc5 15. Nxc5 Nd4 16. Qf2 Nxf3+ 17. gxf3! That’s the killer move! White opens the g-file and prepares for giving mate!

17. ... Rd5. Comparatively better is 17. ... 0-0, although after 18. Rg1 Kh8 19. Qh4 (Δ Rg1xg7) 19. ... h6 20. Ke2! White still retains a powerful attack. 18. Rg1 Kf8. Now it’s late for 18. ... 0-0 as after 19. Ne4 the curtain falls. 19. Rd1 Bc8 20. b4 Qd8 21. Ke2! f6 22. Ne4! Black’s position is totally hopeless and the end comes quick and easy. 22. ... fxe5. 22. ... Qe7 23. Qh4 makes no difference. 23. Qc5+ Qe7 24. Qxe7+ Kxe7 25. Rxg7+ Kd8 26. fxe5 Rxd1 27. Kxd1 h5 28. h4 Bd7 29. Nf6 1 : 0.

Late Afternoon

Tea Gueci – Marina Brunello
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 4, 2017
Sicilian Defence B90

As it was expected the game between Tea Gueci and Marina Brunello was a hard fight, back and forth, with some crazy side effects on both sides. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. f3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8. Be3 Be7 9. Qd2 0-0 10. 0-0-0 a5 11. a4 Nc6 12. g4 Nb4 13. Kb1 Nd7. Varying from 13. ... Rc8 14. g5 Nh5 15. Rg1 f5 16. gxf6 Rxf6 17. Bg5 Rf7? (17. ... Rxf3) 18. Bxe7 Qxe7 19. Qxd6 which left Black a Pawn down for no compensation, Abrahamyan – M. Brunello, 32nd Reykjavík Open, Reykjavík 2016. 14. Rg1!? A new, but not very useful move. More to the point is 14. h4 Nb6 15. Qf2 Nc4 16. Bxc4 Bxc4 17. f4; for instance: 17. ... exf4 18. Bxf4 Bxb3 19. cxb3 Qd7 20. Qf3 Rfe8 21. Nb5 Ra6 22. g5 Bf8 23. Rhf1 Rc6 24. Bxd6! Bxd6 25. Nxd6 Rf8 26. Qf5 Qe7 27. Nxf7! Rc5 28. e5 Rd5 29. Rc1 Rdd8 30. e6 Rd5 31. Qe4 Re8 32. Nh6+! Kh8 33. Rf7 1 : 0 Lastin – Iskusnyh, 60th Russian Chess Championship Higher League, Krasnoyarsk 2007. 14. ... Nb6 15. Qf2 Nc4 16. Bxc4 Bxc4 17. Bb6 Qb8. Black sacrifices temporarily a Pawn in order to seize the initiative. 18. Nxa5 Be6 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. exd5 Bd7 21. b3 Rc8 22. Rge1?! Gueci is not interested in Stockfish’s line 22. f4 Bd8 23. Nc4 Rxc4 24. bxc4 Rxa4 25. Bxd8 Qxd8 26. fxe5 Qa5 with a very likely draw by perpetual check. 22. ... Ra6! 23. Re4 Qa8 24. Nc4 f5?! A little too prudent. It came natural to dare 24. ... Bxa4! 25. bxa4 Rxa4 26. Na5 Rxa5 27. Bxa5 Qxa5 28. Qd2 Rc3! with plenty of compensation for the Exchange. 25. gxf5 Bxf5 26. a5! Bxe4 27. fxe4. Curiously enough, White ended up sacrificing the Exchange for only a Pawn, but quite good chances of counterplay on both wings. 27. ... Rf8 28. Qg2 Rf6 29. Qh3 Qe8 30. Ne3. Aiming for tricky tactics. 30. ... Ra8 31. Nf5 Bd8? This ambitious move is really antithetic. The place for the Bishop was at f8 (31. ... Bf8). 32. Rg1. And now, probably due to time pressure, Brunello commits harakiri: 32. ... Rg6? 32. ... g6∞ was imperatively called for. 33. Rxg6 Qxg6 34. Qc3? Gueci, too, must have been short of time, for otherwise she would have realized that 34. Bxd8 Qg1+ 35. Kb2 Rxd8 36. Nxd6! was completely winning. 34. ... Qf6 35. Qb4 g6 36. Nh6+ Kg7 34. Qc3 Qf6 35. Qb4 g6 36. Nh6+ Kg7 37. Be3? Both opponents are under time pressure. Here 37. Ng4 Qe7 38. Ne3 was still tenable. 37. ... Qe7 38. Bg5!? A last-ditch trick. 38. ... Qxg5? It worked! 38. ... Qd7 would have left White with no future. 39. Qxb7+ Kxh6 40. Qxa8. The ending is now extremely unclear, since White’s united passed Pawns excellently compensate for her material deficit. 40. ... Kh5 41. b4 Qg1+ 42. Ka2 Bg5 43. Qc8 Qd4 44. Qh3+ Bh4 45. Qf3+ Kg5 46. Kb3 h5 47. a6 Qb6 48. Qd3 Bf2 49. Qc4 Kf4 50. Qc6 Kxe4

51. a7? Gueci’s nerves eventually broke and she made her final mistake by throwing away the a-Pawn. Instead 51. Ka4 would seem naturally to grant at least a draw. Now Brunello does no longer miss her chance: 51. ... Qxa7 52. Qxd6 Qd4 53. Qxg6+ Kxd5 54. Qf7+ Ke4 55. Qxh5 Ke3 56. Qh6+ Ke2 57. Qa6+ Kd2 58. Qh6+ Be3 59. Qc6 e4 60. c3 Qd3 61. b5 Bd4 62. b6 Qxc3+ 63. Qxc3+ Bxc3 0 : 1.

Time clock

Désirée Di Benedetto – Elena Sedina
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 3, 2017
rq5k/3nb1pp/b3p3/1Npp3B/P4P2/1PB1P1rP/1Q4P1/2R2RK1 w - - 11 28

Position after 27. ... Rg6-g3

The position in the diagram shows what can happen when a Benkö Counter-Gambit goes wrong. White to move and win: 28. Rf3! Deflecting the Black Rook. 28. ... Rxf3. Any other move loses as well. 29. Bxg7+ Kg8 30. gxf3 Bxb5 1 : 0. And Black resigns without waiting for 31. Qg2! which would result in too serious heavy losses for her.

Across the Hall

Marina Brunello – Alessia Santeramo
44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 3, 2017
Spanish Game C64

Since nothing particular happened on this day in the 77th Italian “unisex” Chess Championship, let’s take a look at what’s going on in the 44th Italian Women’s Chess Championship which started today in Cosenza. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. 0-0 0-0 7. h3 a6 8. Ba4. The most “authorial” other way is 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Re1 Re8 10. Nbd2 d5 11. exd5 Qxd5 12. Nb3 Bf8 13. c4 Qd6 14. Be3 Nd7 15. d4 e4 16. Nfd2 a5 17. a4 f5 (17. ... Qg6) 18. c5 Dg6 (18. ... Qe6 would have prevented, at least for a while, White’s next move) 19 Nc4 with a powerful edge, Carlsen – Grischuk, Candidates Tournament, London 2013. 8. ... h6 9. Re1 Ba7 10. Nbd2 Ne7 11. d4 Ng6 12. Nf1 c6? A passive move that only loses time. For 12. ... b5 13. Bc2 c5 14. Ng3 Re8 15. Be3 Bb7 16. d5 c4 see Ortega Valle – Korneev, 2nd International Open, Sevilla 2006. Nevertheless, it’s also interesting 12. ... d5!? 13. exd5 exd4 14. Nxd4 Nxd5 15. Ng3 Ndf4 15. Ng3 Ndf4 16. Bxf4 Nxf4 17. Qf3 Ne6 18. Ndf5 Ng5 19. Qf4 Bxf5 20. Nxf5 Ne6 21. Qe4 Qd2 22. Re2 Qf4 (Jaracz – D. Isonzo, 3rd International Festival, Lido degli Estensi 2002) as 23. Ne7+ Kh8 24. Qxe6 is answered by 24. ... Qxa4 with roughly equal chances. 13. Ng3 Qc7 14. Bc2 Be6. Now and on the next few moves, Black would have done better to make self-criticism and play ... c6-c5. 15. Be3 b5. It was still time to play ... c6-c5 followed eventually by ... c5xd4 and ... Rf8-c8. 16. Qd2 Rfd8?! This suggests that Black is thinking about pushing the wrong Pawn. 17. a4! d5? And this opens up the game for the joy of White’s light-squared Bishop. 18. axb5 axb5 19. exd5 Bxd5 20. Bxg6. 20. Nxe5! Nxe5 21. Bxh6! might have been even stronger. 20. ... Bxf3? Stockfish’s 20. ... exd4 21. Bf4 dxc3 22. Qxd5 Nxd5 23. Bxc7 Nxc7 24. Be4 cxb2 25. Rb1 Nd5 26. Rxb2 leaves Black with insufficient compensation for the Knight, but the text allows Brunello to mount a devastating attack. 21. Bc2! exd4 22. cxd4 Bd5

23. Bxh6! gxh6 24. Qxh6 Bxd4 25. Rxa8 Rxa8 26. Nf5 Ne4 27. Nxd4 Qe5 28. Bxe4 Qxd4. Or 28. ... Bxe4 29. Nxc6 and the curtain falls. 29. Bh7+ Kh8 30. Bf5+ Kg8 31. Re3 Bf3 32. Rxf3 1 : 0.

Half a Day

Carlos García Palermo – Luca Moroni
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 2, 2017
1rr1bnk1/6pp/4pp2/3p4/pb1P4/NqB3PB/1P1QPP1P/R1R3K1 b - - 9 31

Position after 31. Rf1-c1

Black has obtained a clear superiority on the Queenside, and it’s finally time to exploit it: 31. ... Rxc3! This brilliant Exchange pseudo-sac neatly forces the gain of a Pawn, clearing the way for the passed a-Pawn. 32. Rxc3 Bxc3 33. bxc3 Rc8 34. c4? The White c-Pawn was doomed anyway, but this is the worst way to give it up, as now Black will rely on a second passed Pawn. 34. ... dxc4. The rest is very easy: 35. d5 c3 36. Qd3 c2 37. Rc1 Rc3 38. Qd2 Qxa3 39. dxe6 Ng6 40. Rxc2 Rxc2 41. Qxc2 Qb3 0 : 1. The time control is over and García Palermo resigns.

Splat split

Luca Moroni – Andrea Stella
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, December 1, 2017
English Opening A33

1. Nf3 c5 2. c4 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e6 6. a3 d5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Bg5 Bc5 9. e3 Bxd4 10. exd4 0-0 11. Be2 h6 12. Bh4 Qd6 13. Nb5!? A new move. If 13. Bg3 there might follow 13. ... Qe7 14. 0-0 Ne4 15. Rc1 Nxc3 16. Rxc3 Qf6 17. Rd3 ½ : ½ van Wely – Ivanchuk, 2nd Aerosvit Chess Tournament, Foros 2007. 13. ... Qe7 14. 0-0 g5 15. Bg3 Ne4. As they say, the player with the isolani (for now, both of them) must strive for maximum activity, avoiding (if possible) unnecessary exchanges. 16. Re1 f5!? 16. ... Be6 seems to be much quieter. 17. Be5. White actually threatens Nb5-c7. If 17. Nc7 at once, Black would have likely answered 17. ... f4! 18. Bxf4 gxf4 19. Nxa8 Qg7∞ with very unclear play. 17. ... Nxe5 18. dxe5 a6 19. Nd4. White’s position is structurally superior, and now much will depend on Moroni’s skill (and luck) in handling it. 19. ... Qxe5!? Very Steinitz-like. This temporary gain of Pawn could cost Black something. 20. f3 Nc5 21. Bc4!? Here 21. Bxa6 allowed White to regain his Pawn with a solid positional edge, but Moroni prefers to play for powerful dynamic compensation. 21. Rc1 (Stockfish) was another interesting modus operandi, halfway between matter and soul. 21. ... Qd6 22. Ba2 Bd7 23. Rc1 Rad8 24. Qc2 Rc8(!) 25. Qd2 Na4 26. Rxc8 Rxc8

27. h4! Moroni – a strong attacking player – boldly sacrifices a second Pawn aiming to keep the initiative at all costs. 27. ... gxh4 28. Ne6! Re8! After 28. ... Bxe6 29. Rxe6! Rc1+! 30. Qxc1 Qxe6 31. Qf4! White immediately regains a Pawn and retains a more-than-worthy compensation for the other one. It’s understandable, however, that after yesterday’s lucky marathon game against Daniele Genocchio, Stella weren’t in the mood to strive for a draw by stillicide, and wisely lets his opponent force a (pretty) draw by perpetual check. 29. Bxd5 Bxe6 30. Qxh6 Qxd5 31. Qg6+ Kf8 32. Qf6+ Kg8 33. Qg6+ Kf8 34. Qf6+ Kg8 ½ : ½.

Blue Moon

Francesco Sonis – Sabino Brunello
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, November 30, 2017
Two Knights Defence C55

Sabino Brunello doesn’t seem too happy to be playing here and now, or maybe, who knows, he’s not too happy with the Sports Court’s sentence that he may perceive as too light and inconsistent with the seriousness of the misconducts denounced by him and nine other Italian top players. Whatever it is, it is quite obvious that he’s playing visibly under his own standards. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Be7 5. 0-0 0-0 6. Re1 d6 7. a4 Na5 8. Ba2 c5 9. Na3 Bd7. For 9. ... Nc6 10. c3 a6 11. Nc2 Rb8 12. h3 b5 13. axb5 axb5 14. Ne3 Be6 see Giri – Carlsen, 2017 “Your Next Move” Grand Chess Tour Blitz, Leuven 2017. 10. c3 a6 11. b4 cxb4 12. cxb4 Nc6 13. b5 axb5 14. axb5 Na7 15. Qb3 Be6. Here the immediate ... Na7-c8-b6 was well worth considering. 16. Nc4

14. ... Nd7. 16. ... d5! (Stockfish) seemed the best way to “stay in the game” with interesting play for both colours. Now Black gradually falls into an unpleasant position, in a way that may resemble Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi’s blue mood during the 32nd (and last) game of the 1978 World Chess Championship match against Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov. 17. Be3 Nc8 18. Qb2 Kh8 19. Bb3 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Bxc4 21. Bxc4 Ncb6 22. Qb3 f5? Black had no reason to be happy with his position, but this is indeed the losing move. Suddenly, the power of White’s Bishop pair comes out prepotently, and, after the infiltration of the light-squared Bishop (which exchanges itself with the d7-Knight) Black’s Queenside falls apart. 23. exf5 Rxf5 24. Be6 Rf8 25. Bxd7 Nxd7 26. Qd5 Qc8 27. Ra7 1 : 0.

Hidden Stone

Michele Godena – Danyyil Dvirnyy
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, November 29, 2017
French Defence C03

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Be7 4. Bd3 c5 5. dxc5 Nf6 6. exd5 Qxd5 7. Qf3. Godena adopts a modest approach which will turn out to be psychologically quite crafty. 7. ... Qxc5 8. Ne4 Nxe4 9. Qxe4. Calling for Black’s castling Kingside. 9. ... Nd7 10. Nf3 Nf6 11. Qh4 Nd5 12. Qg3 0-0 13. a3(!) Bd6. Dvirnyy was probably very relaxed and plays by ear. Here he should have done better to play 13. ... Qc7! (eventually exchanging Queens) with at least equality. 14. Qh4 f5 15. 0-0 e5? Black probably made this move so natural without thinking too much about it first, but, unluckily for him, it is a mistake which loses at least a Pawn. After 15. ... Qc7 16. Re1 Black’s position is quite unpleasant, but there’s nothing irreparable.

16. Qc4! e4 17. Qxc5 Bxc5 18. Bc4 Rd8?? Blundering a piece! It’s true that after 18. ... exf3 19. Bxd5+ Kh8 20. Bxf3 White remains a Pawn ahead with a clear advantage in position, but it’s also true that it was by far the lesser evil. 19. Bg5 Rd6 20. Be7 1 : 0. Things that can happen to everyone! Michele Godena himself has once lost in 21 moves to Stefano Tatai (on occasion of the 48th Italian Chess Championship at Chianciano Terme in 1988).

How Chess Imitates Life

Artem Gilevych – Andrea Stella
77th Italian Chess Championship; Cosenza, November 29, 2017
Neo-Grünfeld Defence D70

The 77th Italian Chess Championship has started today in Cosenza, Italy, a very few days after a sentence on its own reliability. Everything began when ten top Italian players wrote an open letter denouncing unethical acts and behaviours by a group of unnamed fellow players. After months of investigations, the Sports Court (a quasi-judicial body), on behalf of the Federazione Scacchistica Italiana, in a secret trial, made its verdict. I don’t know the facts as well as they do, so for any details you may read the ruling of the Court. Regarding the moral issue raised by the signatories of the open letter, instead, I believe that the most important answer may lay between the lines of the ruling of the Sports Court: “A spontaneous and widespread rebellion has lately emerged in the chess world against what, at first, were only occasional immoral behaviours, but that, more recently, have unfortunately become in Italy widespread and constant unlawful practices”. Yes, we all live in a yellow submarine.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 e6!? 4. Nc3 d5 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 Be7. 6. ... Bg7 7. e4 dxe4 8. fxe4 h6 9. Bh4 g5 10. Bg3 0-0 11. Be2 gives White a plus (Larry Kaufmann’s analysis). 7. cxd5. From a theoretical viewpoint, the exemplary reference should be 7. Qd2 Nbd7 8. Bg3 c6 9. e4 dxe4 10. fxe4 Bb4 11. Bd3 e5 12. a3 Ba5 13. d5 cxd5 14. cxd5 Nc5 15. b4 Nxd3+ 16. Qxd3 Bb6 17. Nf3 0-0 18. Nxe5 a5 19. b5 a4 20. Nc4± Nakamura – Safarli, 5th Chess World Cup, Tromsø 2013, match game 1. 7. ... Nxd5 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. e4 Nxc3 10. bxc3 c5 11. Qd2 Nc6. Black has a temporary advantage in development, which yields him at least equality. 12. Bb5 0-0 13. Ne2. 13. Qxh6 cxd4 14. h4 dxc3 15. h5 g5 doesn’t seem to lead to any particular benefit. 13. ... Rd8 14. h4. Who knows, with hindsight, castling Kingside could have been wiser. 14. ... cxd4 15. Bxc6. I have my doubts that this was necessary. 15. ... bxc6 16. cxd4 Ba6! Black has clearly taken command of the game, but White’s next moves precipitate the catastrophe. 17. Nc3? 17. Rc1 seemed the best to avoid the worst. 17. ... c5! 18. d5? Now White’s position quickly disintegrates. 18. ... exd5 19. Nxd5

19. ... Rxd5! 20. Qxd5 Rd8 0 : 1. For if 21. Qc6 then 21. ... Qe5! finis.

Chasing that sound

Ennio Morricone: Do you want to play a game? Alessandro De Rosa: Oh, well, first you have to teach me the moves. [We take a very elegant chess set that stood on the living room table of Morricone’s house]. What would your first move be? Ennio Morricone: I usually open with the Pawn in front of the Queen, so I probably would do it, although one time a great chess player such as Stefano Tatai advised me to always open with e2-e4, a signature tune which much reminds me of basso continuo. Alessandro De Rosa, ‎Ennio Morricone, “Inseguendo quel suono”, Milan, Mondadori, 2016, section 5

And so, chasing that sound, you should not miss to take a look at Italian chess review Torre & Cavallo Scacco!, which, in its summer issue No. 7-8, July-August 2017, paints a living portrait of the twelve-time Italian Chess Champion Stefano Tatai!

Spaghetti Western

Pier Luigi Basso – Luca Moroni
75th Italian Chess Championship; Milan, December 2, 2015
Keres Defence A40

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Bb4+ 3. Nd2 b6 4. a3 Bxd2+ 5. Bxd2 Bb7 6. Qc2 f5!? An interesting transformation from Kangaroo to Tulip. 7. e3. For 7. Nf3 Nf6 8. g3 0-0 9. Bg2 Be4 10. Qc3 Qe8 see Kühn – Tereick, Chess Classic Elo Open, Baden-Baden 2013. 7. ... Qe7 8. f3 Nf6 9. Bd3 0-0 10. Ne2 d6 11. Bc3 Nbd7 12. b4 Rae8 13. Ng3 g6 14. Qb3? The b3-square is not suitable for Her Majesty. 14. 0-0 appears to be a far wiser course. 14. ... e5 15. d5

15. ... b5! A very strong coup by which Black breaks up the enemy’s centre. 16. 0-0-0. Decidedly too optimistic, but also 16. 0-0 e4! 17. fxe4 Ng4 looks quite unpleasant for White. 16. ... Nb6 17. Rhe1? The red light flashes, but now it’s hard to suggest any good move for White. 17. ... bxc4 18. Bxc4 Nxc4 19. Qxc4 Bxd5 20. Rxd5 Qf7 21. e4 fxe4 22. fxe4 c6! The coup de grâce. 23. Qxc6 Rc8 24. Qxd6 Rxc3+ 25. Kb2 Nxd5 26. exd5? A blunder, but after 26. Qxd5 Qxd5 27. exd5 Rd3 there is no hope anyway. 26. ... Rxg3! 0 : 1. For if 27. hxg3 then 27. ... Qf2+. The very young, gifted Luca Moroni, though at his first experience in a national Championship, showed both brilliancy and skill.

Pier Luigi Basso (left) vs. Luca Moroni (right). Photo: Scacchierando.it.