Mastering Positional Chess | Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky

[@tyrellwreleck4226]

"It's not about solving 15 problems a day, it's about solving 3 problems and extracting the key lessons from those problems" -Danya

[@hellopleychess3190]

I think he said 50

[@Scorsoo7]

Totally agreed. At GM level. When still at club level (something like 1600- elo): doing 15 3-move puzzles/day will certainly improve you more than solving 3 positional 8-move puzzles/problems.

[@MistaOppritunity]

@@Scorsoo7 I can agree with that, but the video is about positional training. The concepts behind positional understanding are a lot muddier than a forced 3 move checkmate. It is still worth noting that doing lots of tactical puzzles at the intermediate level will lead to growth as a player, or at the very least make you more consistent.

[@Scorsoo7]

@@MistaOppritunity I gotcha. Just wanted to clarify that positional puzzles are probably not very interesting/too hard for lower rated club players (under 1600 elo). They probably lack the tactical skills and should train that.

[@leesky5203]

20 hard mate in 2 is a good idea

[@alexf0101]

this is some high level stuff, very interesting to see the thought process of a gm. I'll now be much more aware of positional concepts while I'm blundering away my pieces!

[@josephdraper6971]

Thats more okay than just blundering

[@platitudeomenw441]

Haha, well said. Naroditsky really is an excellent teacher, and it warms my heart to see fine gentlemen such as yourself appreciating his talent

[@solomonherskowitz]

If you keep going this way tho you'll be so much better once you stop blinders

[@bonganimazibuko1901]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@VintageVets]

@@josephdraper6971 t

[@Evilanious]

Daniel: black should develop a bishop with Bd7. Asgaard: black should grab more space in the center with e5. Stockfish: h5, baby!

[@ShabazzTBL]

Everyone and there mom: Take Qxd7 taking their undefended Queen with check. Stockfish: Kg2.

[@hellopleychess3190]

I was thinking instead of Bb6 Bd7 black should play a5 and Ra6 but I think the knight would hop into b4

[@MrSupernova111]

lol

[@aaronambroso1201]

Get good.

[@J4ve]

ChatGPT: Rook takes king, gg ez win

[@dominiks5068]

lots of love to the person who donated at 22:35

[@bozone89]

you could tell Danya really felt for the person who sent the message about his mom even though it is so hard to find the right response in those situations

[@ClydeBarber]

Yea I almost took this out, but its so heart warming, it's like, not directly chess, but you get a taste of the community and how much he cares. Had to leave it in. -Editor.

[@breezyashell]

Please do not monopolize a stream meant for education/entertainment. Danya isn't your friend and it's inappropriate.

[@elliothicks7602]

@@breezyashell how are you gonna tell someone who’s mom just died that they’re being inappropriate for writing that message?

[@swift8821]

@@breezyashell found the neck beard

[@cryptooooooooo]

@@swift8821 he's not entirely wrong, people misunderstanding that their relationship with a streamer is parasocial is not a new phenomenon

[@NotoriousKhamid]

GOLD! The chess community is striving for such content!

[@maxseymour5610]

Why doesn't this man have more subs? Easily the best educational chess content on youtube, keep doing what you do danya

[@trent797]

He's getting there. I think he had around 30K when I started watching regularly around Thanksgiving.

[@fredreickweaver809]

@@BeFourCM I think levy does all right, but he can be somewhat flamboyant i agree, and Danya is more educational

[@Blitnock]

Of the chess channels, Naroditsky seems the best for education. Another good educational channel is Powerplaychess hosted by GM Daniel King-- he's only got 79K subs. It seems like most chess channels have entertainment as the first goal, not education. But I'm sure I don't know about other good channels.

[@tj4647]

Chess Coach Andras is #2 only to Daniel Naroditsky, in some ways Andras can be better

[@juleslondon3088]

Interesting to see how the popular streamers mentioned in this thread have fared over 2+ years. Levy’s now the king of KZbin and Danya has 10x as many subs. Rosen is also doing well and appears to have been taking recent lessons from Levy in the art of clickbait… and poor old Andras, whose content is indeed extremely high quality, is still languishing in the backwaters of KZbin with people saying, “I can’t believe this guy doesn’t have more subs!”

[@mickeyhalo745]

Danya's empathy is heartfelt. May anyone that suffers from sadness & depression, be comforted. Pure unifying love is the consolation. We are together!

[@mediocreburger2893]

Ah I remember this stream, the chat was amazing when the person talked about his mother. It’s truly an incredible community.

[@SaurabhXDD]

Following Danya since 3 years... Best guy on twitch

[@Tyler-bp4md]

@@SaurabhXDD best guy in general you mean

[@rjjhh443]

@@SaurabhXDD ya he has all emotions Anger, humble, humour, pride, joy, sadness, frustration, dissapointment, excitement, attitude etc And above all he is cute😅

[@charlesfairchild3836]

@@Tyler-bp4md you dumb🤦‍♂️🤣

[@onesack9614]

22:30 Danya you’re a great guy man, it’s really heartwarming to see that kind of sincere compassion and empathy from someone, keep it up!

[@evanmaier2551]

This is incredible content, I have never trained positional chess before and now I see it is a big weakness. Also my solidarity goes out to the viewer who spoke about their mental health struggle. It's important to remember you aren't alone and better times are ahead. Hang in there

[@jimgu2578]

There aren’t as much positional challenges out there. I love that Danya talked about them in depth!

[@patricksasser5783]

Danya you are the main reasons I fell in love with the game. I love your mindset when attacking a challenging puzzle and the fact that you are a gm and still learning inspires me to strive for more

[@ddmannion]

Daniel is so humble. He keeps apologizing for using the clock as a weapon. I can understand why since historically chess hasn't been about playing down to the millisecond. However, we need to acknowledge that the times have changed and that the audience for chess has become much more interested in blitz and bullet games. Personally, I believe that Daniel's talents should be recognized by the broader chess community as being very significantly mainstream today. Thank you for the excellent videos GM Naroditsky!

[@flyingpinguu]

I would love more positional chess lessons although this was a little high for me. It would be nice to have these puzzles but more on an intermediate level.

[@pawncube2050]

+1

[@ss9392]

Wow, this is gold content! Thanks Daniel appreciate it as always : D

[@GamingStyleBFH]

Can you please make a series about mastering positional chess? It's easily the most difficult thing to learn and understand in chess and you are explaining so brilliantly

[@asherf534]

That is just too beautiful how you destroy the book with the engine. Not sure I’ll ever get to this level but your work has been unbelievably helpful to my game.

[@epicaliya]

“Chess can offer the best kind of escape”, now my theory about numbing myself with chess recently 24/7 to escape life problems is confirmed

[@User-g2c7t]

I feel you

[@Vinterfader]

Daniel, this is fantastic! The fact that I am completely off in many of these (rated around 1700 on lichess) speaks to how much I can improve my positional play. Keep em coming :)

[@RigMaster_]

I really love this video and I found it very very interesting. I really hope you continue to do this kind of vid! Also, condolences to the person who lost their mum. One day when it is not so raw you will be able to look back and focus on the good times. Stay strong.

[@grrrexky]

Just woke up, and I read with my blurry eyes, Mastering Positional Cheese. Guess who made a dono? CheeseCake. My third eye has opened. I have gained the power of chess prescience.

[@tgrimshaw]

shut up. real dono was at 22:35

[@maloxi1472]

@@tgrimshaw Hahaha ! Let the guy pry his third eye open in peace 😄

[@tgrimshaw]

@@maloxi1472 have you ever tried DMT?

[@tgrimshaw]

Danya Mating Tactics

[@Landino019]

Love the profile pic lmao

[@LitCactus]

Aha, I'm right on time tonight!

[@laafridi7681]

I love this video so much. We can see a grandmaster thinking hard and struggling to find moves among so many different ideas and there's no right move they just find easily and explain it to us. It replicates what real everyday chess games are like for us where there's a bunch of close options

[@robertrasmussen763]

This is some of the best content you have made

[@footyskillzrus]

43 minutes Chess lesson from my favourite teacher on the planet? that's today's productivity sorted :D

[@tonito5588]

Hope we have more of these! I feel like I've learned so much for these. Would also greatly appreciate a version of this but for positional ideas at the more intermediate (1600-2000) level :))

[@lawreno]

Please more videos like this - no one else is making content as good as this. Going through problems hearing your train of thought is superb.

[@dudeabot6000]

On break at work, perfect timing for this to come out

[@tommydashed4205]

In the closed position I think king safety was important because white always has Qh5+ looming. Also, both potential pawn breaks are on the king side so that side will likely become open which also makes getting the king out of dodge seem like a pretty good idea.

[@Jagdwurststulle]

This is absolutely amazing! I'd love to see more of these strategy puzzles!

[@catytroopa845]

Always exciting to see more lessons!! Thank you Danya ❤️

[@xnick_uy]

I like this format. I find it very instructive to look not only at the best move but also at the other options.

[@razaghani93]

Genuinely a game changer, I actually give my dad a run for his money when we play now after following these speed runs. Thanks Danya

[@trent797]

This was a super useful video. I'd love to see more in this format. (Of course, I like seeing more of ANY chess content from Danya :) )

[@akshatraj6736]

⛔ Could not find **Add a comment** button. Here is the entire summary: ```markdown 🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:01 ♟ *Evaluating Pawn Capture in Positional Chess* - Evaluating a pawn capture in a positional chess scenario. - White is down a pawn and considering options like Bishop takes d6. - Analyzing candidate moves: capturing the pawn versus relocating the bishop. 02:57 🏰 *Choosing Between Candidate Moves* - Evaluation of candidate moves Bishop b6 and Bishop a3. - Pros and cons assessment for each move. - Considering future moves and positional advantages after each candidate move. 05:47 🤔 *Difficult Positional Chess Puzzle Analysis* - Analyzing a challenging chess puzzle with multiple plausible moves. - Emphasizing the importance of maintaining positional advantages over material gains. - Demonstrating the complexity of selecting the best move in such puzzles. 08:51 🛡 *Evaluating Positional Advantages and Pawn Weaknesses* - Assessing positional advantages in a balanced material situation. - Identifying pawn weaknesses and planning to exploit them. - Exploring various moves considering pawn structure and king safety. 13:27 🗝 *Flexibility in Piece Placement and Tactical Evaluation* - Understanding flexibility in piece placement and its significance in chess tactics. - Analyzing the importance of adaptability in considering tactical moves. - Emphasizing the significance of grasping the essence of a position rather than exact move correctness. 17:19 🛡 *Strategic Insights for Closed Positions* - Exploring strategies for closed positions in chess. - Highlighting the importance of weak squares and pawn breakthroughs. 19:56 🛡 *Positional Chess Puzzle Solving* - Analyzing positional chess puzzles with focusa on improving position. - Exploring potential moves, assessing threats, and considering positional sacrifices. - Emphasizing the importance of identifying tactical opportunities and avoiding blunders. 21:36 🌟 *Support and Community Engagement* - Offering condolences and support within the chess community. - Encouraging engagement and solidarity among community members. - Discussing personal experiences and finding solace through chess during tough times. 26:39 📚 *Positional Chess Challenges and Strategic Analysis* - Analyzing closed positions and strategizing for king safety. - Assessing the transition from middle game to endgame and prioritizing king safety. - Weighing pros and cons in positional play, evaluating moves' impacts on position. 30:36 💡 *Deep Positional Understanding and Move Considerations* - Evaluating endgame scenarios, assessing pawn structure, and evaluating move candidates. - Discussing the depth of positional ideas and considering different move possibilities. - Emphasizing strategic concepts and creating weaknesses to gain positional advantages. Made with HARPA AI ```

[@firestarter7817]

I love your videos Daniel, never cheap clickbait unlike levy❤️

[@asusgaming4386]

More videos like this please, i have searched a lot on KZbin and found tactics match analysis... BUT NEVER HAVE I SEEN a video made on this topic found a few but they are not nearly as close to quality as this one I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU WATCH THIS VIDEO you will LEARN A LOT NO MATTER YOUR RATING. keep up the good work Daniel!!!!

[@steveboblefinagin]

Loved these exercises a lot! Hope you continue these every now and then in the future

[@Stefan-xh1hi]

We have stockfish 16 now but this is still easily one of the best videos on youtube to this day. MORE OF THIS DANYA! ❤

[@christianhaynes7596]

Lubed up and ready for ya Dan

[@bmartin4320]

Blacked: Danya positional domination of white pieces.

[@geckogeico2212]

Wrong site there bud

[@csugabo85]

Back rank mate

[@danielbader1030]

Big respect to you really because you say what you think is right and you don't prepare these moves before the streaming to let people think that you know everything about chess Good job

[@SaurabhXDD]

For the people who wants to know The book name is EXCELLING AT CHESS by GM Jacob Aagard 👌 (Also check Positional Play by him)

[@SaurabhXDD]

@@giuliopenza9422 ok so there are two different book written by GM Jacob, one is EXCELLING AT CHESS and other one is EXCELLING AT POSITIONAL CHESS, but i don't know which book Danya used in this video

[@JamesCharbonneau]

@@SaurabhXDD At 7:28 he says it’s Excelling at Positional Chess.

[@j-mo3129]

Great video! Difficult for me to see solutions but I think seeing problems worked thru are a good way get a feel for the game. Thanks

[@thebigboofer3826]

You’re a class act Daniel. Love your content.

[@markosborn3079]

This is a great video...come back to this one frequently!

[@elroyjacobs8126]

Love this. I need to subscribe to his Twitch channel. I saw him playing a few a openings and explaining it in detail!! I think he played the Danish or something, tactics galore and he showed the viewers his thinking process. He's good at explaining stuff, I hope he prospers.

[@BrividoCarlo]

This video was amazing. Hope you keep this up!

[@jeffpowers609]

Thank you Daniel I plan on watching all your videos, we are lucky to get lessons from a GM.

[@hiimjosh868]

this is actually really useful. i don't usually think this way, but it's all so intuitive now that i've seen it.

[@cjelliscloudy5903]

This is exactly what I needed; I play the English and I've been super craving some positional training! Would love to see some English in the speedrun!

[@sbrynjelsen]

Time for another positional chess video. This one was great and I’d love to see more like it.

[@anirudhkashyap23]

danya has the best chess content on yt for learning chess

[@sollertia_]

25:53 I didn't like Nf8 so much because to me after bishop takes bishop, knight takes is forced or else you drop a pawn with queen check and I think that favours white Edit: wow, I can't believe I didn't think of just running the king. The apparent weaknesses on the light squares just vanishes

[@chandramoulimukherjee6653]

In the 2nd last puzzle I think Danya missed this but I understand because he was a bit distracted but Nf8 and Qg6 f5 is not a threat since white had Bh5 which wins the queen.

[@IIIrIpI7III]

Saw that too 😊 It's interesting that it builds on the king safety solution too since it avoids that potential pin

[@davidaleman7708]

You are the man Daniel! Thanks for your content!

[@lionsskyblue442]

thank you for the detailed information and the chance to learn from your experience

[@RealityCheck1]

Ba3 was my 1st choice in the 1st problem bec I learned about pins & bishop & rook end games.

[@ahmadayman8169]

Excellent Work ! we need more of that content Please

[@Marhakesh]

More of content like this. It is so instructive!

[@scottcarey697]

Really love this type of content

[@danielcarrerasnieves7437]

This would make a great series

[@nonebelievingbeliever3753]

27:39 is this possition from the Caro kann? I've seen this idea in some advanced closed Caro kann position...from chess able of course

[@ice6692]

Can't wait to get back tonight to watch this after work!

[@pairot01]

This looks like a nightmare of a book. In a closed position where all of white's pieces are in the 3 back ranks, the author is worried about king safety but never mentions why.

[@coleschemistrychannel4172]

Timestamp?

[@johnbolt3883]

The king safety is important because white has far more opportunities for viable pawn breaks. The only viable pawn break for black threatens king safety, so it is important to move the king before those pawn breaks occur. The king’s safety is essentially being measured by its ability to hide behind pawns (as well as proximity to pieces, but pieces can be more easily re-arranged for a defense than pawns). h6 and g5 are too weak to provide that cover, so walking the king to the other side of the board becomes necessary. Castling is possible, but it weakens the pawns on that side of the board so it is not preferred. They do explain this in the video somewhat, but some does need to be inferred.

[@timeisgod3867]

Danya we need more content like this👍👍 thanks for the video

[@SDTCG]

Thanks for this video. I love your take on chess training. I feel like you're a strong proponent of teaching core chess elements to new players when others say not to. "Don't try to learn positional chess til you're at least 1800." "Don't play the Sicilian til you're at least 1900." I see advice like that all the time and I'm glad you have your own ideas on that. What is a book on positional chess that you would recommend to new players? Do you feel your book would be good for that or are there books that are better for new players?

[@jsrjsr]

But the advice of getting good at tactics before postitonal play is a good advice in general. You cannot do good( or even learn) postitional playing without assesing the possible tactics that may arise due to the execution of strategic plans. Furthermore, Without being good at tactics you cannot properly evaluate between unsound and sound plans, thus positional play gets delayed.

[@SDTCG]

@@jsrjsr I'm not disagreeing with anything you're saying, but I feel like having some knowledge about positional chess can improve my overall play quicker than just doing puzzles all day. Daniel points out good squares for a knight or shows the value of fianchettoed bishop that I wouldn't learn from doing tactics puzzles, or if I would it would be after lots of repetition and learning it naturally though experience. But if you just tell me, "This is a good position, here are the benefits, here is why." that's something I think players at any level can benefit from. I liken it to learning a language. If you have studied linguistics you can use those tools to help you learn the language more quickly. Unless you know have the vocabulary you're not going to be able to speak the language. Tactics are the vocabulary, but positional chess is like having a background in linguistics.

[@jsrjsr]

@@SDTCG haha. I also agree with you mate. Just wanted to make sense of the "postitional play only after 1800". I think the advise is good on pedagogical grounds no matter how frustrating it is. Learning the hidden wisdom of positional play is also good( like the series of yasser on the elements of chess). At least for me, positional play was rather obscure to me until i practiced tactics whose aim was not to be up in material or checkmate my opponent, but to play for squares gaining control of files etc. Good luck with your chess :)

[@SDTCG]

@@jsrjsr agreed. That was the most civil discussion I've ever had in KZbin comments, so thanks for that as well. Haha

[@chrisjernigan1912]

Also highly recommend Jacob Aagaard's book Positional Play or any of the books from the Grandmaster Preparation series.

[@marLamaDeo]

Don’t forget us when you have 1 mil subs

[@arasvardanyan3708]

Wow, I'd love more of these, might just get this book now

[@mikecantreed]

I guess this isn’t surprising since Danya is very strong GM but still impressive that his read of the position almost exactly mirrors the analysis covered in the book.

[@jamesparker6447]

What happens if you do this? @6:40 @Daniel Naroditsky @Chat Hi Daniel or chat, could you explain what would happen next if...: W: Knight D5 (threatening a fork so I assume black takes) B: Pawn D5 W: Rook D5 (I assume black will take the free bishop now) B: Pawn C5 (Rook could take the free pawn now, but I think positioning the bishop to enforce threat on knight is better?) W: Bishop D3 (black would lose the trades at this point so I feel as if the pawn enforcement would be their move?) B: Pawn G6 (so now I think white should put black into check with rook) W: Rook E1 (now I think black should move F5 knight because if he moved the other then W: Pawn G4 could occur next) B: Knight E7 (Take the free pawn? But then I assume black would castle next) So could you tell me what would happen next Daniel (or chat)? Or if the moves were done right? My Chess.com score is in the 650's-700s for 10min matches. So I'm a noob, but I think this works? Would love to know! Thank you!

[@mohamedftita9664]

Really kind person thanks Daniel 👍👍

[@ChirsHunter]

1:27 "The issue is that I really love the bishop" xd

[@StephenaroM]

such a great instructive video!

[@IvanRandomDude]

How many legal moves do I have?

[@firestarter7817]

You are the king of chess content

[@playtime909]

Love these instructional video's Danya

[@tariqsaeed5150]

We need this to be a series.

[@Nagantios]

You're a wonderful person, Daniel.

[@jamesnewby2382]

Amazing content, thanks Danya

[@Alkis05]

42:40 What he meant to say was that his "brain needs to go into recovery mode after taking in some many high level ideas." --Rave Dubin

[@DoutorZion]

23:00 you are a great guy

[@patrickinocencio2305]

I like this video. I wish this will be a series

[@goals6588]

Gm level handling of that msg

[@avvvqvvv99]

fantastic video, learned a lot

[@danishdarrylhabib4450]

22:34 bro, who's cutting onions? 😢

[@bazs7669]

Very instructive, thank you!

[@tommydashed4205]

b5 in the final puzzle looks like a very Hikaruan move. I think he'd find something like that even in a blitz game.

[@lukacalov1988]

I liked this guy when he played tennis in the 90s Didnt know he plays chess from time to time

[@PhantomAyz]

he played tennis?

[@ntj7677]

Look up Pete Sampras, Naroditsky's doppleganger

[@emmanuelnwachukwu6071]

Wow! So much knowledge.

[@ilyaibrahimovic9842]

The immediate threat in the second position is Bg4 Bxc8 and if Rxc8 then Qa4+, if Nxc8 then maybe Nf5

[@kmktruthserum9328]

just started this and first exercise i can tell this is gonna be a nice vid.

[@lizardi1037]

Ever since I've gone from beginner to intermediate/advanced, the amount I learn from danyas content only increases

[@Cellus5000]

More of this please!

[@Xbotto]

More of this please make it a series

[@SteveDorrans]

Advanced level stuff. Thank you!

[@sil6764]

Really amazing content Danya

[@rejson6860]

I didnt understand when he mentioned author of the book and title, can someone who did tell me what book it was ?

[@goatsgreetings]

Sure, it's Positional Play by GM Jacob Aagaard.

[@SaurabhXDD]

@@goatsgreetings it is not positional play

[@SaurabhXDD]

It is excelling at chess by GM Jacob Aagard :)

[@rejson6860]

Thanks guys !

[@EarlSmith2469]

I am sub'd to DANYA'S stream on twitch. He truly deserves his high rating. Some players have padded ratings. Look at how many games Danya has played. He keeps improving even more and more and after awhile, he's going to be completely unstoppable.