The immortal game

The immortal game 

This game was played at 1851 between Adolf Andressen and Lionel Kieseritzky , Anderssen start with :

1: e4-e5 

2 : f4-e×f4 King's Gambit Accepted 

3 :  Bc4- Qh4+

 4 : Kf1-b5

 5 : B×b5-Nf6 

6 :Nf3-Qh6

7 : d3-Nh5

8 : Nh4-Qg5

9 : Nf6-c6

10 : g4-Nf6


Now the pawn and the bishop are attacked, things looking normal so far, white will go with his bishop to a4 or c4 , but black prefred to protect his g4 pawn and played rook to g1 and sacrificed his bishop 

11 : Rg1-c×B5

12 : h4-Qg6

13 : h5-Qg5

14 : Qf3-Ng8

15 : B×f4-Qf6

After 16 : Nc3 let's take a look at the position :

- all white pieces are developed and active , a strong knight in the center , a strong bishop controls important diagonals ,  he just has to connect his rooks .

- white also has more space on the king side .

- black pieces are bad and inactive because they still in the starting position. 

- the black king is stuck in the centre. 

- the d5 square is a big weakness in the black position, and the h1_a8 diagonal is dangerous and it can be opened at any time. 

-Bc5

17 : Nd5-Q×b2

18 : Bd6- B×Rg1

19 : e5-Q×Ra1+

 

White sacrificed his rooks! Now we should ask our selves: what is the point? why Anderssen don't care about his pieces? let's take a look at the position to understand what's happening :

• the white has a stifling control on the center, the d knight and bishop occupy two strong advanced poste and press hard on the black king .

• the other knight participates in the siege of the black king. 

• the white queen is strong on the long white diagonal and the f file.

On the opposite side of the board we notice that the black has lost the game strategically :

• the light pieces are inactive and still in their places .

• the king is not safe in the center .

• the queen and the dark squares bishop are far from the events .

• the a knight as if it doesn't exist it has no place to move except to go back .

This is exactly what was Andreessen looking for, he sacrificed material in exchange for activity and initiative, this sacrifice is known as positional sacrifice and it is quite different from the tactical sacrifice whose steps can be calculated to find out his purpose , wich often results to winning a material or to checkmate,  the positional sacrifice is ambiguous because we cannot see its purpose directly, it makes a strong position or weakens the position of the opponent by achieving one or more strategic advantages that leads to victory if  this advantage was exploited correctly. 

20 : Ke2-Na6

21 : Ng7+-kd8


The trapped king on d8 has no safe square left to survive  , if white could put his bishop on e7 it will be checkmate , but the knight on g8 prevents white from doing so,  that's why white has to eliminate the defending knight by 22 : Qf6+!!

-N×Qf6 the only move

23: Be7# 1-0



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