Middlegame Strategy of Anatoly Karpov by GM Ben Finegold

Check out Ben's Chessable courses here! www.chessable.... In this lecture, GM Ben Finegold discusses the middle game strategy of Anatoly Karpov; Russian chess grandmaster and former World Chess Champion. Broadcasted live and recorded at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta on September 22, 2021
Originally posted on the CCSCATL Channel on September 28th, 2021. Yes, You’ve probably seen this before. We’re merging the channels. Feel free to shame anyone in the comments who obviously didn’t read the description.
1:14 Anatoly Karpov - Wolfgang Unzicker, Nice 1974
22:34 Anatoly Karpov - Alexei Shirov, Biel 1992
35:11 Anatoly Karpov - Andras Adorjan, WTC 1989
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#benfinegold #anatolykarpov #ruylopez #queensgambit #semislavdefense

[@kdub1242]

"This guy's not a clown. He just looks like one because he's playing Karpov."

[@bilyonarelifestile2226]

truth hurts

[@friendly-tester]

"And in this position..." is everything I can remember from these videos. Just that sentence. Nothing about the position though.

[@KokeBeast23]

Turn the video on !…. On!

[@FrancoisTremblay]

Are you sure you're not watching agadmator?

[@pazdziochowaty]

I met Karpov in 2000 when he played in world blitz championship in Warsaw, he signed his book for me. My wife rearranged the appartment once and gave away a number of books so they don't take so much space. One of those books was that one with Karpov's signature. She's not my wife anymore. I could have another one if I wanted to but there is only one Karpov. I will never forgive her this crime

[@36AccountsBlockedRIP]

Don't let women anywhere near what you value most.

[@KrazyKrzysztof]

kurwa!

[@Nippleless_Cage]

Lol

[@siLence-84]

If that story is true, that's amazing and horrifying simultaneously. My condolences.

[@siLence-84]

@@36AccountsBlockedRIP that's kinda hard to do. At least with the wife. Kinda impossible actually if you want to stay married, heh.

[@theunknown21329]

No matter how many times I see that Unzicker game it just teaches me something new every time. Beautiful!

[@danielcrase]

That game is amazing, is just shows Karpov doing Karpov, plays e4, says I win, and boa constricts them absolutely perfectly. ASMR Chess did a video on it and that where I saw it, I love this game.

[@adomaskuzinas2137]

Ben had such a funny blindspot for the Knight on g3 defending the e4 pawn all the way through the variations :D

[@MrSupernova111]

Yep! lol

[@ja734.]

Apparently Karpov had the same blind spot because the computer says Be2 and Bf1 are both better than Bb1, so I'm really not sure why else he would have played Bb1.

[@joeyoest1105]

Yeah, I was really confused. I figured I was missing something dumb (because that is usually the case, lol), but I guess not.

[@gamingspartan2]

I saw but figured he played bb1 because he wanted to move the knight in the future

[@EsoRimerCz]

This is what you get if the lecture is not sponsored.

[@andreitiberiovicgazdovici]

It is already the third lesson of G.M. Finegold about Anatoly Karpov, and they're great. I admit it, I am a positional player and for me Karpov is brilliant, I try to imitate his style but nothing to do: usually the (few) times I win it is because at move 70 the opponent leaves out of desperation or falls asleep

[@sayandas5]

Well that sounds more like Finegold style than Karpov style 😉😳

[@jessejordache1869]

It's just the opposite for me. I didn't know how to connect the opening, middle, and endgame, or even find a plan, until I discovered Karpov. Studying his games was like listening to someone tell you what you already know but never heard put into words. I was seeing the logic behind moves that my intuition had been screaming at me to play all along, but I had ignored them because I couldn't find the reasoning behind it. It's more than being positional -- it's killing your opponent's counterplay, and valuing activity above all else, with essential soundness a close second. If Karpov were an opening it would be the Keres Attack as White and the Nimzo-Indian as Black. As white you jump on the fact that Black's dsb is cut off and play g4, followed by gradually locking down Black's position with pawns and pins. As Black you head for a position that's sound, strategically clean, and gives Black its own activity and targets.

[@andreitiberiovicgazdovici]

@@jessejordache1869 I understand it perfectly: mine was just a joke. I agree with G.M. Finegold when he says that Karpov's middle game is among the best in history, better than Carlsen. As a child my father told me that Kasparov is the better of the two, (he was a big fan of his, even though he always considered Fischer as the best ever), I agreed with him, but secretly I always cheered for Karpov

[@UncleDansVintageVinyl]

Thank you. Long ago, I thought that Karpov was boring. Then I started actually paying attention to his games. Now he's one of my favorites. His best games are just beautiful.

[@jessejordache1869]

Right? I dismissed him as the previous generation's Kramnik (not to knock Kramnik, but his style doesn't really speak to me). But then you realize that Karpov would never, not in a million years, play something like the Berlin, to take the queens off the board and get on an expressway to a more-or-less equal endgame. Karpov's play is like jiu-jitsu with chess pieces. Just because he doesn't play the KiD doesn't mean he didn't come to fight.

[@UncleDansVintageVinyl]

@@jessejordache1869 I really like this comment. Yeah, Karpov really did come to rumble. He fought hard. He just fought a different way! I bought Mednis's "How Karpov Wins" a long time ago, and I was hooked a few games into it. I eventually sold the book--and then I bought it again, because I regretted selling it. And that was pretty early Karpov!

[@jessejordache1869]

@@UncleDansVintageVinyl I think I might have a bootleg copy of it. Haven't gotten around to it yet. My interest in chess waxes and wanes.

[@winchester6678]

The pawn on e4 is not hanging, it is defended by the knight on g3, the engine thinks 23. Bishop f1 is better instead of Bb1.

[@alekhinesgun9997]

He probably wanted the bishop on the b1 diagonal to help defend against f5 in the future, but yeah it’s defended so he could’ve played Bf1, though after Bf1 it’s a long journey to get back to the b1 diagonal

[@jamesreed422]

Perhaps the computer wants to sac the pawn, but after bf1 the pawn can most certainly be captured if black chooses to do so. After the knight takes, knight takes, black would have f5. Seems like this is allowing black unnecessary counter play.

[@anonymousAJ]

@@jamesreed422 after f5 there's Nf6+ and Nxd7 So your line just leaves black down a piece

[@winchester6678]

@@anonymousAJ exactly, I wanted to write the same. There is no possibility for f5.

[@hellopleychess3190]

ok, there's f5 f4 with an attack by black, it would be a trade while black creates a weakness.

[@theNetworkCH]

I always loved that Ba7 move, and am still waiting for a chance to play something like this at some point.

[@hector9586]

I haven't seen this game but by just saying Ba7 I already know which legendary game you are talking about!

[@theNetworkCH]

@@hector9586 Yeah, Karpov + Ba7 and I know it too :)

[@lymphhh]

Waiting is the first step to failure

[@VitorSantos-dh1jr]

in carokann, sometimes we play Bc2 with the samy motif... Rc7, Rac8.

[@anakinskywalker5576]

When I am in a dark mood, I put Karpov’s boa constriction classics and Gregorian music choir. Seriously, great video and, yes, it looks easy, but it’s anything but easy. That man knows no mercy, what a player.

[@donovan665]

I learned to respect greatly and study Karpov from this video. Great Work!

[@scowell]

Kasparov?

[@YellowSpaceMarine]

I hope this is a joke

[@donovan665]

Oops

[@vigilante8374]

@@donovan665 No no, you were right the first time. Karpov is Putin's little b*tch. Kasparov has been calling him out for 20 years.

[@fsr1960]

At 8:10, Ben said that Karpov couldn't have played Bf1 because of ...Nxe4. That would hang Black's knight to Nxe4.

[@Coach_Jan]

Ye realized the same and was searching the comment section for that message 😂

[@zacharyheflin6794]

Quality content for the avid chess improver. Thank you.

[@danielh2869]

"they made a movie about this game, after it ended.... Sophie's choice." 🤣🤣 I'm in stitches!!

[@belzeblade2997]

Dear Ben, 8:07 when the girl asks why not Bf1, you answered "because the e4 pawn is hanging !". What about the knight on g3 ?

[@ExtraCheeseProject]

True, I had the same thought. I think that the bishop was more flexible on b1 and the g3-knight also wouldn't be tied to the e4-pawn; there's no advantage to having the bishop on f1 and tying the g3-knight down to e4 as on f1 it's just staring at the c4-pawn anyway. However, always play Bf1.

[@carlespeon3289]

I think you’re right. My engine even prefers Be2 (+1.2) to Bb1 (+0.6).

[@fsr1960]

I love how Adorjan plays f6 forking White's bishop and knight, then doesn't take either, and a few moves later plays f5, again forking bishop (different one this time) and knight.

[@frankspokes5282]

Thank you so much for this one Ben! Karpov is the 🐐!

[@sicoles]

These videos are the best part of my day. Thank you Ben

[@Evilanious]

Always repeat, especially your best lectures!

[@technodro8628]

I missed your educational content so much. This one was especially great Vintage fine gold!!!

[@andrejatodorovic4094]

Lol, when he said that Black player actually wrote a book titled "Black is ok", I wasn't sure if he is joking, cause with Ben you never know, so I googled it and it turns out that he even wrote 3 more sequels, namely: "Black is back", "Black is still ok" and "Black is ok forever". 😄😅😅👍

[@nick0424]

Outstanding

[@UserAm10]

Thanks ben

[@jonasniederson5172]

Bishop A7 is a monster move! Found myself laughing. And "I'm not saying that Karpov is human...", tears in my eyes.

[@caesarsailor4051]

I’m gonna watch this again, please more on Karpov

[@grbluen]

Best video you've done in a long time!

[@wicked5999]

Reupload? I've already seen this

[@bomnitoperro9422]

Rawr

[@siddharthamishra1999]

Yeah he's reuploading a bunch of videos from the chess club's channel to his personal one

[@PeterSzpiriev]

Nice lections

[@nuwandalton]

"A precursor to Magnus the way he plays the middle game, except that Karpov was better" That's certainly an unpopular opinion in these "Carlsen Cult" years!

[@sesh7357]

Excellent stuff!

[@paulgreen7906]

While I am a tactical player and my idols are Morphy, Tal, Spassky and Kasparov. You have to appreciate how good a player Karpov was in his prime. He is the positional master and the Unzicker game is one of my favourites. He is in the top 10 of all time!

[@MrSupernova111]

Once you cross 2000 you'll need to have more than just tactics in your arsenal. Expert and titled players aren't going to let you casually waltz into their camp and blow up their position. I love tactics too but most higher level games aren't decided with tactical shots.

[@thekurdishtapes8317]

I like Karpov much more than even Capa. Capa appears to just trade everything and then win an equal endgame, which is admittedly a a great skill but not so appealing to me, I prefer Karpovs strangling style

[@MrSupernova111]

Beautiful games! Thanks!

[@Via-Media2024]

Chess speaks for itself

[@PelDaddy]

This was very helpful and instructive. Thank you!

[@TheGloryofMusic]

This is why I don't play chess anymore--I got too afraid when my opponent would double-up on the bubble-up.

[@nickmeyer1030]

Yay Karpov! Just ruthless.

[@thedamnmoron]

I thought that karpov had passed away when I saw the video

[@NewGrow-kb1bg]

He “accidentally fell” in the Russian duma and is in an “induced coma”. So he’s dead; the Russian government killed him. He made a deal with the devil

[@JonDoe-uq1mk]

9:36 Doesn't the knight on g3 protect the e4 pawn here? So it isn't hanging.

[@leo-um6yt]

this is exactly what i was wondering….

[@alekhinesgun9997]

He probably wanted the bishop on the b1 diagonal to help defend against f5 in the future, but yeah it’s defended so he could’ve played Bf1, though after Bf1 it’s a long journey to get back to the b1 diagonal

[@ThunderChickenBucket]

nice, i love this lecture

[@talgoam]

"I'm not sayin' that Karpov's human" :D

[@DMSBrian24]

But the e4 pawn isn't hanging?

[@colbystuckman7020]

Go Ben!

[@laurentjameswf]

I love it 🎉 thx a lot ben !

[@PeterSzpiriev]

Karpov is classic. Like Mozart in Music

[@ExtraCheeseProject]

Maybe Hikaru keeps playing Ba7 with black because he doesn't realise that in Karpov's immortal game he played Ba7 with white 🤔

[@King.Mark.]

7:40 the pawn is ok and looked after by the knight as well?

[@maialinellospazio]

Around minutes 7 and 11ish, Ben keeps analyzing middlegame variations where White "loses the e4 pawn", never realizing that it's defended by the Knife in g3 :)

[@Brice23]

Karpov on Karpov. The story of his development is very interesting. Not only in Chess, but as a man, Karpov is an inspiration.

[@salmarwow]

So your inspiration these days is drunk Karpov falling from stairs? Wow.

[@dasgdasg]

Karpov as a chess player is a genius. Karpov as a man is execrable and should not be an inspiration to anyone. Karpov ptui ptui ptui.

[@MrCupidd]

After C4 BF1 doesn’t the knight on G3 protect the e pawn

[@joeyoest1105]

8:15 “the e pawn is hanging [confusing the audience]”

[@TheMaestromMephisto]

i'm a tactical player but i'm starting to love karpov

[@fsr1960]

That was a very Nice Olympiad.

[@JonDoe-uq1mk]

I like Ben's gamer girl headphones

[@PeterSzpiriev]

Look Karpovs pieces all in harmony

[@PeterSzpiriev]

I played with Kaidanov a draw

[@cecilasen]

If you want to play like karpov make sure to overdose on caffeine so you don't fall asleep before your opponent does

[@anonymousAJ]

7:35 ...Ne4 Nxe4 So its not so loose. Is there a tactic or did Ben not see Ng3xe4 ?

[@jessejordache1869]

"Why would you play into your opponent's hands?" To this day, Kasparov bringing the Tarrasch Defense to the 1984 WCM is a total mystery. Yeah, why don't you pick a defense which gives White a target that the right player can make the central feature of the whole game? What could go wrong? Later on, you can relax with a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors and open with rock against a guy who always plays paper.

[@willzang3000]

damn what a game

[@manmoth_1990]

Ba7 is definitely up there with the greatest moves ever played. I think Nigel Short said it was his favorite move. (edit: then again Nigel says a lot of weird things)

[@NickKravitz]

Poker is also a good game for old people. In addition to a hand only taking a few minutes, everyone believes old men can neither calculate nor bluff. Will there still be bridge in 30 years?

[@madhavsanap6690]

In the first game was the white pawn really hanging ? Knight was guarding the pawn I think. Bb1 ...

[@andrew_owens7680]

Double up on the bubble up! Triple up on the Snapple up?

[@manuel278]

Hello Finegold, thank you for your video. There were very important information in it. But I have some questions. The first goes back to the minute 10:17: Why bishop b1? The knight on g3 protects the pawn on e4 - so bishop b1 is not necessary. The second was in the minu te 22:20: Black can move the Queen back and forward from e8 to f7 and to e7 if necessary. In addition I want to ask why Karpov is not under the top 10 anymore. I am looking forward to your answer. Thank you very much!

[@nbeqo]

Thanks for the videos but use an engine, man! Bb1 because e4 is not protected, what about Ng3? or after cb cb Qc3 you could go over = Bxb5 followed by Rc1.... etc. Sorry, just an honest feedback.

[@Derkalerk]

Fun fact: Double up on the bubble up is a Crack cooking reference.

[@miguelpanta]

@743: the knight still guards W's e pawn??

[@michaelangelo1202]

Karpov is the Jose Mourinho of chess, or Catenaccio of Chess

[@firstnamelastname7476]

i ran that final position vs Unzicker through Stockfish and Karpov is +9.. just amazing.

[@siLence-84]

Running the game through would be amazing, unless there was a positional blunder or 2 that were extremely severe. I can imagine the engine just slowly creeping up move by move to get there.

[@brigidwell]

5:08 b4! is really instructive to me. I never see moves like that because I'm usually focused either on neutralizing my opponent's best pieces or improving my own (I would've just played Nf1 here). I like this idea that Karpov is picking on the opponent's already bad piece, knowing full well that black is already insecure about it.

[@guardianofnature1]

At 7:39, Isn't the white knight on g3 defending the e4 pawn that is only being attacked once? I don't understand why white's biship has to keep defending the e4 pawn in this case.

[@jandal8905]

You're right.

[@PeterSzpiriev]

I can beat You in practical game but i like Your lection, Gata Kamsky was my favirite. Radjabov

[@acerimmerz]

Karpov is definitely one of the GOATs in the game and I hope he recovers soon after him being attacked recently

[@CHE6yp]

He wasn't attacked, he fell

[@vigilante8374]

​@@CHE6yp Lol, the guy with the Cyrillic name has cleared it up for us. Nothing else to see here, folks. Definitely zero chance a member of the Duma got himself into a good old fashioned Russian disagreement. According to Chessbase: "After an accident, former World Champion Anatoly Karpov was rushed to the hospital with multiple head injuries in which he was placed in an induced coma. Karpov was put on a ventilator now, and has been diagnosed with cerebral edema, fractures of the right parietal and right temporal bones, multiple head hematomas, and traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage"

[@CHE6yp]

@@vigilante8374 you got me, I'm a kgb agent, also it's supposed to be half Cyrillic, but I'm impressed you figured the Cyrillic part out. But seriously, if someone attacked him there is a good chance there would be a video, Moscow is littered with cameras. And I've seen people fall on their head and get similar injuries, so that's not impossible. Besides, Karpov is from Duma as you said, if someone attacked him government wouldn't let it slide, and would punish someone publicly

[@vigilante8374]

@@CHE6yp I can't even tell if you're serious or not. (I do notice I have a problem with this and Russians in general. RT is so bonkers right now.) Very early in 2020, multiple Moscow doctors were complaining that they lacked equipment to deal with the pandemic. Three of them fell out of high windows. Three of them. On separate days, but within a month of each other. The government didn't take credit for any of them, nor did any of the surviving doctors (I think two lived?) mention that they were attacked. More recently, several billionaire oligarchs have been killing their entire families before killing themselves, without any known motives. Karpov is a fairly big name, and unlike many in the Duma he has a long list of international friends build up over the decades due to his being a chess legend. Friends who may be making it hard for him to overlook some things. If he were wavering behind the scenes in his support, this would be entirely unremarkable outcome. Or maybe he fell, sure. Maybe.

[@CHE6yp]

@@vigilante8374 it's possible that he was jumped if something happened behind the scenes, it's just, I haven't really seen him oppose the current state of things. A lot of people in Duma have friends aboard, and those friends are more powerful than chess grandmasters. So I'll assume he fell, until there's anything to suggest otherwise.

[@OmneAurumNon]

7:40 Ben said that the e pawn would be hanging after Bf1, but isn't the knight on g3 still defending it?

[@edwardjanuary1259]

Why you delay uploading the lectures ,I mean there is space time curvature between Sant Louise channel and yours , may be. It is always delay!!!!!! ?

[@thetransferaccount4586]

nice games

[@yotoober1]

Just started watching this, so maybe it's on there, but would love to see a series on Karpovs 1994 Linares tnmnt where Karpov smoked the competition 11/13, no losses, and as they say, "it's performance that counts" Well his performance in that tnmt was a ridiculous 2985 🔥 and there were like 6 or 7 future World Champions and also future women's world champion. And most of the others were world champion candidates or runner up world champions. So what's an ELO of 2985 ratings inflated today? Certainly worth a hundred points, a human Stockfish and no engines back then. ✋✋ Speaking of cheating, Kasparov actually cheated in that tnmt and got away with. The Chief Arbiter of that tnmt actually started a school on how to not see players double touch pieces and apparently his school had a lot of students who are Arbiters today, they allow the same things, you can even pick up your opponents King, no problem, no consequences. 🤣

[@yotoober1]

I mean seriously, 11/13 playing these guys. Are you kidding me? This isn't the Friday night games at your local chess club. Some serious talent there. 🤯 FIDE & GMA Champions (GM Association/PCA Professional Chess Asoc. founded by Kasparov) 1 Karpov WV 2 Kasparov WC 3 Shirov WC Candidate 4 Bareev WC Candidate 5 Lautier Strong GM 6 Kramnik WC 7 Topalov WC 8 Anand WC 9 Kamsky WC 10 Ivanchuk *DO 11 Gelfand WC 12 Illescas Spains top GM 13 J Polgar Womens WC 14 Beliavsky WC Candidate *DO = Always a Dangerous Opponent

[@siddharthamishra1999]

@@yotoober1 Small correction, Judith never went for the women's WC title, she always played in the open section

[@yotoober1]

True, she always played in the Open, that's why she is GM and not WGM. But was she not also the future Women's chess WC?

[@yotoober1]

My bad, I left out the word "considered" So, "considered the Women's WC" as she had the highest ELO ever for Woman chess player.

[@DocUK123]

Great video! Thanks! The only time you don't take on f4 is in the Vienna Gambit, then it's bad..otherwise you can play like Karpov :)

[@ahmicmatija]

46:34 Best here by far is Qg8+

[@kfc8885]

RIP KARPOV

[@untonsured]

He's not dead yet although he was attacked he appears to be recovering.

[@vincethruster3955]

its like Sophie's Choice, but serious

[@tobilori8601]

why isnt black playing Queen b7, trading queens at some point, for example after Kg2?

[@chessbrilliance8783]

Black is ok with resigning! New book by Adorjan.

[@nygeek6471]

22:23 if you plug it into an engine what does it recommend

[@groussac]

An irrelevant question, but are you any relation to Michael Feingold, a theater critic for the Village Voice? I know you guys spell your names differently, but thought there might be some connection.

[@dquinn1988]

Yes, it’s his nephew.

[@renehenriksen1735]

Ben Finegold : " - How does Karpov win blitz-games against Karjakin when he´s 70?" Me (answering): " - Because he´s been taught Carlito´s way dear Bunny, eh sorry Benny!"

[@hellopleychess3190]

re-uploaded this, I know it

[@jessejordache1869]

fyi, at move ...22, Black doesn't really have anything better than ...c4. The problem with ...cxb4 is that either after 23. Rxa8 ...Rxa8 24.bxc4, or 23 bxc4 directly, stockfish shows that the pawn on b5 is basically undefendable, because of how easily white can attack it and how Black's tangled pieces don't allow a defense that doesn't create another weakness. They're not crazy computer lines, they're lines that players at the elite level would find. Karpov in particular probably would have known that the b-pawn falls without having to calculate, because he thinks more schematically than combinationally. Or I do, and Karpov's games make sense to me like no other player's. Oh, I see you saw it too. I was going to say "you'd see it if you were playing the game in earnest" but didn't want to presume.

[@malachickisawesome]

Let’s go

[@iniohos2]

0:31 Well, I can...here's Botvinnik's"The boy doesn't have a clue about chess, and there's no future at all for him in this profession".

[@alexandersanchez9138]

31:37 This is an underrated joke. “That’s how good he is!” is a brilliant punchline.

[@anotherview729]

The really funny thing is though. I thought it is Nf5, and i think it also works.

[@chessriddle]

always sac the exchange

[@Tazer183]

Unziker was nearly 50 for the 1st game

[@inspectorlunge3887]

27:56

[@xavierg6398]

hi sir

[@markroo6091]

How would you call Knife F5 with a Fork, a Bindent move, Spitfork F5? 😂

[@ash9788]

Handsome sponser, except for muliple things.

[@optimalbrand]

the new version - black is not okay 😄

[@kmarasin]

To this day I don't understand how a GM as strong as Unzicker could play a maneuver as bad as Nc6-d8-b7.

[@alekhinesgun9997]

His pieces were already tripping over each other at that point anyways, he just decided to exacerbate it

[@kmarasin]

@@alekhinesgun9997 it was "still theory" up to that point, there are ways to play without playing like Unzicker

[@alekhinesgun9997]

​@@kmarasin I mean not really, Nb7 had only been played once prior to Unzicker

[@tobiasjohansson2902]

"three sides of the board".

[@kapa1611]

👍👍👍