Beating 1.e4 with the Caro-Kann · Training Game

Another Caro-Kann victory! The best defense against e4 in my opinion, It's easy to learn, easy to play, and requires knowing patterns instead of endless theoretical lines.
This was a very typical exchange variation in which white went for a quick kingside attack. What my opponent did in this game is actually what Caro-Kann players fear the most in these positions. He tested my defenses, they almost failed, but I managed to find a way to reduce the material down into a completely winning endgame.
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. Bf4 { B13 Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation, Rubinstein Variation } Bg4 7. Qb3 Qc8 8. Nd2 e6 9. Ngf3 Be7 10. O-O Bh5 11. Rae1 O-O 12. a3 Bg6 13. Bxg6 hxg6 14. Qb5 a6 15. Qd3 b5 16. Re3 Na5 17. Ne5 Nc4 18. Rh3 Nh5 19. Be3 Nxb2 20. Qe2 Nc4 21. Ndxc4 bxc4 22. g4 Nf6 23. g5 Nh5 24. Rxh5 gxh5 25. Qxh5 Bd6 26. f4 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Qb7 28. Rf3 Qb1+ 29. Kg2 Qg6 30. Qh4 Rab8 31. Rh3 Qe4+ 32. Qxe4 dxe4 33. a4 Rb3 34. a5 Rxc3 35. d5 exd5 36. e6 fxe6 37. g6 Rf6 38. Rh8+ Kxh8 39. h4 Rxe3 40. h5 c3 41. h6 Rxg6+ 42. Kf2 Rf3+ 43. Ke2 Rxh6 44. Kd1 d4 45. Kc2 Rh2+ 46. Kb3 Rb2+ 47. Kc4 c2 48. Kc5 { White offers draw } 48... c1=Q+ 49. Kd6 d3 50. Ke5 d2 51. Kd6 d1=Q+ 52. Ke5 Qd5# { Black wins by checkmate. } 0-1
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[@ndmb6333]

maan what a weird opponent ! well done Stjepan defending his mating attack

[@ramnoon6447]

This type of opponent is always the most annoying to lose to. Good win Stjepan!

Super impressed with your Qb7 defense! Well done

[@EgoCZ]

I love how happy you are when you win

[@AcVinicious]

The GM is shining thru ! :D

[@acsu96]

Good job! These kinds of games are why I stopped playing the Caro. The equal positions often have fixed central structures that quickly can lead to some nasty attacks by White. I also think 25...Qe8 is a very important and somewhat thematic move in these structures, since it prepares ...f6 (or Bxg5! f6) to liquidate pieces and stave off kingside pressure. I see the computer also has the nasty idea of Qe8-a4-c2-g6, similar to what you found in the game!

[@nodiced1]

That defense was soooooo impressive!!!

[@tahmeedchowdhury0007]

Hi Stjepan, great game. Is there any particular reason you don't play the Botvinnik-Carls variation of the Advance Caro-Kann?

[@chessmoments7536]

Hola! Se nota, como a mi, que te encanta la defensa Caro Kann, te sigo por esto, porque yo tambien la amo. Me parece que es las más sólida de todas las defensas que exsiten.

[@pr0use]

I really liked Queen e8. 30:00 when you analyze you state after Qe8 your suddenly losing 2.5. But you play queen d8 instead of E8, E8 is to be able to play up the f pawn to trade queens in some variations or to play g6 while being protected. Therefor not being a draw but a win for black.

[@pablourosa1443]

Qb8 Qb1+ Qg6 was a really good find

[@IronHillock]

A stunning find with the clock ticking. Awesome!

[@alexanderkidd7351]

Yes that was the highlight of the game for me as well. It’s sometimes easy to overlook queen maneuvers in closed, blockaded positions. As shown here, it’s definitely an important skill for defending your king

[@manuelaaguilar7853]

Nicd defense by the Queen...good game👍

[@abhisheknautiyal7956]

Great game. Great defence. Loved it

[@Hitcha_]

would it be possible to draw arrows when you're calculating? would be easier for viewers to follow I think. keep up the great work.

[@TheWaxlemon]

better habit to try and visualize, i think that's why he doesn't; he is trying to practice

[@realmahadeo]

in fact thanks to Stjepan I feel I am now better at square names

[@cxaxuxluth6286]

Do you Plan to make more theory chess video?

[@3looy]

Really beautiful defense

[@spd7693]

What a total lack of fair play from your opponent! Are players at this level still playing hope chess?

[@zorza8907]

hey, i love your videos! but i do have some hopefully constructive feedback: please put your mic in a more stable position, because when you move around in your table it captures very loud noises that are annoying in some earphones. cheers!

[@empty_rivers]

nice defense! At first i had thought that taking that pawn on b2 was just wasting time when your king was in such peril, but it (combined with choosing to recapture with your b pawn, opening the file) was unexpectedly crucial to your win! I think that his behavior at the end was just bad sportsmanship. it can be fun to throw all of your pieces away after blundering like he did with Rf3, but the draw offer should have just been a resignation honestly.

[@liamkildea1851]

I like how dedicated you are to e4, c6. Could you break down the variation of Dings Caro kann vs Fabiano Caruana?

[@brant25]

Well played, sir

[@CdnBloodlust]

Move 37 why not rook f3 that looks brutal. I know hes trolling but keep playing accurate. Great video.

[@kimcostantino1051]

I would be mated 😅 your queen maneuver was great !

[@josiahstone2887]

Very fun to watch as a 1300

[@bluefin.64]

Engines have to run to greater depth and their evals stablize a bit before you can trust them. You might not have the identical output as if you run to 30 or 40 ply, but it will still be good, much more reliable than the early evaluations.

[@styenwanninayake3]

Nice

[@enzocarlo-liu1265]

You played Qd8 not Qe8

[@pommedemer1922]

Nigga is an integral sign

[@SumNutOnU2b]

I noticed that too but I couldn't tell why Qe8 was supposed to be better

[@romanvercier3556]

Why take back with the h pawn when you could open the rook file ?

[@v-shenoy]

I assume this is regarding the bishop recapture on g6 with hxg6, instead of fxg6. It's advisable to capture towards the centre in most scenarios. Especially since fxg6 splits up your pawns into 3 islands, leaving you with a backward pawn on e6. It also exposes your king a bit. Unless there's a concrete reason to capture with the f pawn, in most cases the h pawn is better.

[@AKH3156]

Destroying people the last few games!

[@ScienceScope7]

Hey Stjepan, I recommend do not give spoiler about game on the title. The exciting part is that the question "Who is going to win this game ?" and if you give the answer really early on there is no much to be excited about. This is just a suggestion take care :)

[@vitalylomov4124]

I usually look at his games on lichess and come to youtube to hear his thoughts afterwards. So, the result is not a mystery.

[@Sifo_Dyas]

Don't give the ending away in the title! I like a little suspense.

[@seba-62]

Stjepan, isn't the main move in the caro to play queen d7 on move 7 in the exchange double bishop variation. i'm just wondering cause i also study and play the caro. i truly believe the caro is the best opening but im just wondering. and also was the engine broken at 30:05 ? that was so weird!

[@kylen6430]

Qd7 and qc8 are both frequently played. I prefer the qd7 too though.

[@seba-62]

@@kylen6430 oh 👌

[@vitalylomov4124]

I used to play Qd7, but that allows a tempo after Kf3-Ke5. That's why the engine prefers Qc8.

[@kylen6430]

@@vitalylomov4124 due to the semi closed center, that tempo isn’t a big deal, and can certainly be worth the opportunity to swap DSBs

[@jakethemuss8081]

Opponent was tilted in the end there haha

[@Abdulaziz.Al1]

Are you from Russia? Also why did you take the black bishop with the h pawn and not the f pawn?

[@mattdean4223]

He is from Croatia.

[@bluefin.64]

Taking with the f pawn would have badly weakened the e pawn, making a juicy target and given White an easy game. When pieces are exchanged on g6, hxg6 is normal.

[@Abdulaziz.Al1]

@@bluefin.64is it only good with the charo it’s always better to take with the h

[@bluefin.64]

@@Abdulaziz.Al1It's not always better. Sometimes the f pawn is better. Usually it's worse.

[@Abdulaziz.Al1]

@@bluefin.64 ok thanks dude

[@amarthurfurniture860]

That’s pretty bad form from your opening at the end there. I’ve definitely hung all my pieces on purpose at the end of a loss, then resign. It can be oddly cathartic.

[@stoutlager6325]

Wow. It's weird to see a 2300 do that at the end of the game. 1500? Yeah sure why not. 2300? Come on.

[@Kishan2842]

Bro the background airy noise is not so comfortable. Otherwise great game

[@gunnervine]

i assume its still his scuffed laptop fan that overheats even with chess.

[@mcronrn]

And what’s with that background? He should get some nice chess art for us, rotating daily of course so we don’t get tired of the scenery… 🙄

[@Musicrafter12]

What a salty opponent. Giving everything up at the end on purpose to accelerate the loss because you're upset your attack didn't go through is just poor sportsmanship

[@padiethienpont9719]

first