[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1924.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Bogoljubow,E"]
[Black "Lasker,Em"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Lopez "Battle Royale""]
[ECO "C65"]
[PlyCount "142"]

1. e4 { Bogoljubow (White) opens aggressively by grabbing control of d5 and f5 and allowing for the development of his Queen and light-squared Bishop. } 1... e5 { Dr. Lasker (Black) follows suit, controlling a piece of the center for himself and allowing for the development of his forces. } 2. Nf3 { Another aggressive move from Bogo. The Knight develops to a good post for controlling the center and attacks the e5-pawn. } 2... Nc6 { Lasker has to defend the pawn, so he does it in the most efficient way, by developing a piece that defends the pawn. } 3. Bb5 { Bogo puts pressure on the pawn's defender. The immediate threat is 3.Bxc6, capturing the Knight and leaving the pawn undefended. } 3... Nf6 { Lasker develops his other Knight and counterattacks the White e4-pawn. } 4. d4 { The position becomes more complicated with each passing move. Bogo doubles up on the Black e-pawn, attacking it a second time. } 4... exd4 { Lasker decides to clear things up in the center by trading pawns. } 5. Nxd4 { Bogo recaptures with the Knight (of course, NOT 5.Qxd4 Nxd4!). } 5... Be7 { Rather than playing 5...Nxd4 (which leaves the d7-pawn pinned), Lasker plans to castle early. He prepares for this by developing his last Kingside minor piece. } 6. O-O { Bogo gets the King out of the center and develops the Rook toward the important center files. } 6... a6 { By advancing the a-pawn, Black kicks the Bishop off of b5. Will the Bishop retreat to a4, where it still pressures Black's Knight, or will it go elsewhere? } 7. Nxc6 { Surprise! Bogo captures the Knight (and threatens Black's Queen) instead of withdrawing the Bishop! } 7... bxc6 { There's no time to play 7...axb5, since the Black Queen is in jeopardy. Lasker must take the White Knight. 7...dxc6 promotes the exchange of Queens, so he captures toward the center and keeps the Queens on the board. } 8. Bd3 { 8.a4 is pretty pointless (since the road to the Black King is now blocked by TWO Black pawns), so Bogo pulls his Bishop back to defend the e-pawn. } 8... d6 { Lasker now has pawns controlling b5 through e5, and he's released his light-squared Bishop. Unfortunately, his dark-squared Bishop is blocked in. } 9. Nc3 { Bogo figures that the d-pawn came to d6 to support the c-pawn's advance to c5. By developing his Knight, Bogo threatens to occupy the "hole" on d5 if the c6-pawn steps forward. } 9... O-O { King safety should be one of your main concerns, and castling is a great way to safeguard your King. } 10. f4 { Bogo, by advancing his pawn, grabs Kingside space and allows more freedom for his Rook on f1 (the farther the pawn advances, the more space that the Rook will control). } 10... Re8 { We've seen this before. It's often a good idea to place your Rooks at the head of the d- and e-files. They'll be well-posted there after the center opens up. } 11. Kh1 { Bogo sticks his King into the corner. He's afraid of a possible check by Black later along the a7-g1 diagonal. } 11... Nd7 { The Knight drops back, allowing the dark-squared Bishop freedom of movement. The Knight now has the option of moving to b6, c5, or e5 (once the square f4 is cleared, of course). } 12. Be3 { Bogo develops his Queenside Bishop and cuts down the mobility of the Black Knight. The Bishop controls b6 and c5, discouraging the Knight from moving to one of these squares. } 12... Bf6 { The Bishop occupies the long a1-h8 diagonal, putting pressure on the f3-Knight and (indirectly) on the b2-pawn. } 13. Qf3 { Bogo finishes his development by getting his Queen off of the back rank. Now his Rooks are connected. } 13... Rb8 { Now we see the purpose behind 12...Bf6. Lasker threatens ...Rxb2 and ...Bxc3 (since the Knight would then be undefended). } 14. Rab1 { The ONLY move (since 14.b3 Bxc3 loses the Knight, and 14.Bc1 Bxc3 15.bxc3 Rxb1 loses the Rook!). } 14... Bxc3 { Normally, a player wouldn't trade a long-diagonal Bishop for a Knight, but Lasker has his reasons (as we'll see soon). } 15. bxc3 { Bogo has to take back with the pawn or else be behind in material. But the b-file is now open... } 15... Rxb1 { ...allowing Lasker to trade off a pair of Rooks. } 16. Rxb1 { Bogo now has control of the open b-file, but his doubled c-pawns are weak and are targets of attack for Black. This is why Dr. Lasker traded his Bishop for the Knight. } 16... c5 { By pushing this pawn, Lasker cuts down the mobility of the e3-Bishop, plus the c5-pawn screens b6 from the Bishop, allowing the Black Knight to move there if Lasker so chooses. } 17. c4 { Bogo wants to prevent the further advance of the Black c-pawn (possible after ...Nb6), but now his light-squared Bishop has become just a glorified pawn. } 17... Qe7 { Nothing dazzling here, just a quiet, position-strengthening move. Lasker has established a battery on the half-open e-file. } 18. h3 { Bogo looks ahead and foresees Black playing ...Nf6 and ...Bg4, attacking the White Queen. He pushes the h-pawn to deny g4 to Black. } 18... Nf6 { Lasker piles up on the White e-pawn, which is now attacked three times and defended just twice. } 19. Bf2 { Bogo anticipates an exchange on e4 and wants to clear his Bishop out of the line of fire. } 19... Bd7 { Lasker could have won a pawn through a massive exchange on e4, but he prefers to retain his attacking possibilities by keeping his pieces on the board. By moving the Bishop instead, he encourages White to advance the pawn... } 20. e5 { ...which he does. Bogo could have defended the pawn a third time with Re1, but he didn't want to abandon the open b-file. } 20... dxe5 { Lasker takes the pawn... } 21. fxe5 { ...Bogo recaptures... } 21... Qxe5 { ...and Lasker emerges a pawn ahead. Now Lasker commands the open e-file with his battery, while Bogo has open diagonals for his Queen and light-squared Bishop. } 22. Bg3 { Bogo spots a way to win back his pawn. He skewers the Queen and c7-pawn. } 22... Qe6 { The Queen has no option other than retreat. } 23. Bxc7 { Bogo snaps up the hanging pawn. The material is even, Bogo has the advantage of the two Bishops, but his pieces aren't placed as well as Black's. } 23... Bc6 { Lasker attacks the White Queen to drive it off of the long a8-h1 diagonal. Then he could safely play ...Qxh3+ (since the g-pawn would be pinned). } 24. Qf5 { Bogo offers a Queen exchange. If Black declines, Bogo could win a pawn via Qxc5. Bogo also sees drawing chances for himself in the endgame. } 24... Qxf5 { Due to White's weak Queenside pawns and the bad placement of White's King (far from the center) versus Black's good placement of his Bishop and Knight, Lasker feels that it's to his advantage to trade down to an endgame. } 25. Bxf5 { Bogo completes the trade... } 25... Be4 { ...but now his Bishop is trapped! There's no way for White to avoid giving up the advantageous Bishop pair. This was the hidden reason behind 24...Qxf5. } 26. Bxe4 { Bogo figures that as long as he has to give up this Bishop, he may as well get another Bishop for it (instead of a Knight). } 26... Nxe4 { Now Lasker has a slight disadvantage in owning a Knight versus a Bishop, but this is somewhat offset by the centralized position of the Knight on a square of the opposite color from White's Bishop. } 27. Rb6 { Now the open b-file comes into play. Bogo uses the open file to attack the Black Queenside pawns. } 27... Ra8 { The Black Rook moves to defend the a-pawn... } 28. Rc6 { ...so the Rook just attacks the c-pawn instead. Of course, it's defended by the Knight, so reinforcements are needed. } 28... h5 { The pawn advances as a preparatory step to an attack on White's cornered King. } 29. Bb6 { The Bishop attacks the Black c-pawn a second time. } 29... h4 { Lasker has no way to save his c-pawn, so he continues the preparations for the attack. Now ...Ng3+ traps the White King in the corner, making it possible for the Black Rook to slide down a center file and deliver mate. } 30. Kg1 { Bogo sees the coming attack and decides that it's best to get the King out of the corner immediately, rather than wait a move. } 30... Re8 { Lasker continues to set up his attack. There's no longer a mate threat, but a Kingside attack will allow him to control the initiative and possibly win some material. } 31. Bxc5 { Bogo had been sidetracked from his attack on the Black c-pawn, but now he finally has time to win the pawn. } 31... Rd8 { Lasker now threatens ...Rd1, driving the King back into the corner (with a strong attack to follow). Had he played 31...Nxc5, he would have derailed his own attack! } 32. Kf1 { The White King runs farther into the open, preventing any possibility of being cornered and mated. } 32... Rd2 { His mating threat stymied, Lasker must content himself with winning back the lost pawn. } 33. a4 { Bogo gets his a-pawn off of the same rank as the invading Rook. } 33... Rxc2 { Lasker gets back his pawn and now threatens the c4-pawn. } 34. Bb4 { By shifting the Bishop, Bogo allows his Rook to defend the menaced pawn. } 34... Rf2+ { The Rook checks, supported by the Knight. } 35. Kg1 { The King has no choice but to head back toward the corner to escape check (35.Ke1 Rxg2 loses a pawn). } 35... Ra2 { The Rook now attacks the a-pawn. } 36. Be1 { Bogo sees that there's no way to defend his a-pawn, so he instead launches a counterattack against the h4-pawn. } 36... Rxa4 { Lasker's Rook gobbles up the one pawn... } 37. Bxh4 { ...while Bogoljubow's Bishop swallows the h-pawn. Lasker's best bet now is to try to eliminate the Queenside pawns (Knights are better than Bishops in endgames with pawns on only one side of the board; remember?). } 37... Nd2 { The Black pieces attack the White c-pawn twice. Bogo must decide whether to try to defend it (by 38.c5) or pursue another plan. } 38. Bd8 { Bogo decides to let the pawn go. His Bishop now controls the square directly in front of Black's a-pawn, preventing its advance. } 38... Nxc4 { The Knight (protected by the Rook) picks off the White c-pawn. Now Lasker must get ready for the long, slow grind of trying to convert his one-pawn advantage into a win. } 39. g4 { Bogo gives his King some more breating room and prevents the Black f-pawn from advancing to mid-board (f5). } 39... Nd2 { By removing his Knight from the same file as the White Rook, Lasker frees his Rook from having to defend the Knight. } 40. Rc8 { The White Rook prepares to get behind the Black a-pawn (the rule about Rooks belonging behind passed pawns also applies to ENEMY passed pawns! It's hard for the pawn to promote with your Rook breathing down its neck). } 40... Kh7 { The Black King gets off of the back rank to prevent 41.Bg5+ (discovered check from the Rook) Kh7 42.Bxd2 (with a winning advantage). } 41. Ra8 { Now the pawn will have a tough time promoting, plus the Black Rook is tied to the pawn's defense. Of course, Lasker could just give up the pawn, hoping that his theoretical Knight vs. Bishop advantage (with pawns on one side of the board) will carry the day. } 41... Ra2 { Lasker looks forward to next moving his Knight and penning the White King on the back rank (remember the Rook's "invisible force field"? The Rook would control the second rank and the King would be unable to cross it). } 42. Kg2 { Bogo sees through Lasker's plan. The King enters the second rank, shielded (ironically) by the Black Knight! } 42... Nb3+ { The Knight begins a trek to get closer to White's pieces, and uncovers a check on the White King. } 43. Kg3 { The King flees to the third rank (to prevent getting trapped on the back rank). } 43... Nd4 { The Knight gets to the center of the board. Now it has the choice of heading to the Kingside to harass White's King, or to the Queenside to harry White's pieces. } 44. h4 { Bogo sneaks his pawn forward toward Black's King and pawns. He hopes to liquidate the Kingside and perhaps force a draw. } 44... Ra3+ { The Black Rook just keeps annoying the White King. Now it's either 45.Kf4 (and Black's pieces and pawns have a good chance of trapping the King), or else... } 45. Kf2 { ...45.Kf2, which means that the White King is cut off from the rest of the board (because of the Rook's "force field" along White's third rank). } 45... Nc6 { Foresight is necessary in endgames, particularly in those where Knights are involved. Black isn't just attacking the Bishop; he's planning to attack the h4-pawn via Nc6-e7-g6-h4. } 46. Bc7 { The Bishop must abandon the d8-h4 diagonal. 46.Bg5 is met with 46...f6, forcing the Bishop far out of play. } 46... Ne7 { The Knight keeps traveling to the Kingside, where it will attack the White pawns. But there's a problem here... } 47. Bd6 { OUCH! The Bishop springs a double-attack against both of Black's pieces! But there's a way out -- will Lasker find it? } 47... Ra2+ { He does! Remember that checking the opponent's King buys you time and effectively gives you an extra tempo. This is a great example of this principle in action. } 48. Kf3 { White has no time to capture the Knight. He must spent his tempo in getting out of check... } 48... Nc6 { ...which, in effect, buys Black an "extra" tempo to save the Knight. } 49. Bc7 { By moving the Bishop to c7, Bogo cuts down on the Black Knight's mobility as much as he can. Now the Knight can't move to a5 or e5; these squares are owned by the White Bishop. } 49... Nd4+ { Lasker again centralizes his Knight, also checking White's King. } 50. Kg3 { The King must move to get out of check, so it moves to a new square where it can guard its pawns. } 50... Ra3+ { This allows the Rook to again drive the King away. Where will the King run now? } 51. Kf2 { It's pretty obvious that the King has to withdraw to the second rank (see the variation). } ( 51. Kf4 { Moving the King to f4 would be a serious mistake. Do you see why? } 51... Ne6+ { The deadly Knight fork wins the Bishop! The White King is forced to move to get out of check, allowing the Knight to capture the Bishop. } ) 51... Ra4 { Lasker now intends to win a pawn (...Ne6 attacks the Bishop and uncovers an attack by the Rook on the g4-pawn). } 52. Kg3 { Bogo has to keep the bases covered, so the King returns to g3 to defend the pawns. } 52... Ne6 { Lasker has no intention of allowing a draw by repetition (possible if he plays ...Ra3+). His Knight move attacks the White Bishop and covers f4, denying that square to White's King. } 53. Bb6 { It's move it or lose it for White. } 53... Ra3+ { Since the Knight and Bishop are on different squares than they were several moves ago, it's all right for Black to check from a3 again without fear of heading for a draw by repetition. } 54. Kg2 { The King retreats to a light square to keep the dark squares open for his Bishop. } 54... Nf4+ { The retreat to g2 unfortunately allows this Knight check. } 55. Kf2 { You'll remember that the only ways to get out of a Knight check are to capture the Knight or move the King. } 55... Nd3+ { The Knight continues the harassment (with an object in mind). } 56. Kg2 { The King returns to g2 (Bogo doesn't want to move the King too far away from his pawns). } 56... Ne5 { Now we see the point of the repeated checks -- the Knight has positioned itself to attack the g-pawn, and the Rook prevents the White King from coming to the pawn's rescue. } 57. g5 { Advancing the pawn is the only defense. Unfortunately, this creates holes at f5 and h5 that Black can drop his pieces into. } 57... Ng6 { Lasker's Knight makes another threat. This time it menaces the h4-pawn. } 58. Bf2 { The best defense, as advancing the h-pawn would leave both pawns hanging and vulnerable to attack. } 58... Nf4+ { Lasker is relentless with threats from the Knight. This time he checks the White King. } 59. Kh2 { The King must move, so it comes to h2 where it can stay close to the pawns. } 59... Kg6 { Now we see the significance of the weak "holes" at f5 and h5. The Black King will move to h5 and the Knight will return to g6, doubling up on the h4-pawn. } 60. Ra7 { Bogo resourcefully prevents the Black King's advance to h5 by attacking the g7-pawn. Now the King is tied to the pawn's defense. } 60... a5 { Black advances his passed pawn. But I'm sure you can see the difficulty here: Black's own Rook blocks the passed pawn's advance. } 61. Bg3 { White lashes out at the Black Knight. } 61... Ra2+ { Instead of merely retreating the Knight, Black responds with a check. This fails to grab the initiative, however, as the Black Knight will still be threatened even after the White King moves. } 62. Kh1 { The King retreats to avoid the check. } 62... Nh5 { Retreating, but grabbing the initiative by attacking the White Bishop. } 63. Be5 { The Bishop backs off to a square where it menaces a pawn as well as controlling the a-pawn's promotion square. } 63... Ra4 { The Rook threatens to pick off the h-pawn. } 64. Kg2 { White is incapable of saving the pawn, as 64.Bg3 would be met by 64...Nxg3. } 64... Rxh4 { Black not only wins another pawn, but threatens White's last remaining pawn as well. The Rook killed the g-pawn's protector, leaving the g-pawn ripe for the picking. } 65. Ra6+ { Inexplicable. White should have just captured the a5-pawn immediately, as there is no way to save the g-pawn. } 65... Kxg5 { The obvious choice. White's last pawn is gone and so is any hope for White to salvage this game. } 66. Rxa5 { The correct move, though White could have played it a move sooner. } 66... Kg6 { The King scampers back to overprotect the g7-pawn. } 67. Kf3 { Centralizing the King is usually a good idea in the endgame, but it's far too late for this now. White is dead but he just won't lie down. } 67... f6 { Black's plan for victory involves advancing his passed-pawn duo. Harassing a White piece st the same time just makes it better. } 68. Bd6 { White saves the Bishop, but also hopes to get behind the pawn duo and menace them on the dark squares. } 68... Rd4 { More harassment by Black. } 69. Bc7 { 69.Bf8 would just be met by 69...Kf7 (a necessary move anyway, as the King has to get out of the way of the advancing pawns). White chooses not to help Black's game along by giving him a helpful, initiative-gaining reply. } 69... Rc4 { The Rook keeps pushing, but there's a method to the madness. } 70. Bd6 { Another Bishop move is forced by the Black attack. } 70... Rc6 { Here's the point: Black wants to advance his g-pawn. After his King backs up (probably to h6 or h7 to prevent annoying checks from the White Rook) and the g-pawn advances, the f-pawn would be undefended. The Black Rook will now defend the f-pawn laterally. The Rook is also posted on a light-colored square, free from attack by the White Bishop. } 71. Bb8 { The Bishop must retreat again. White has had no time to develop an attack by his Rook against the Black pawns as he's been too busy saving his Bishop. } 71... Kh6 { As expected, the Black King clears the way for his connected pawns to advance. 72.Ra7 would just meet with 72...g6. Black controls all the good squares for White's Bishop. White sees the futility of further action and resigns. } 0-1