All language subtitles for Learn to Play the Nimzowitsch Defense Kennedy Variation_ CRUSHING the Linksspringer Variation_(360P)

in today's video

we look at one of the most underrated chess openings

in all of chess specifically the Nimzowitsch defense

a response against e 4

in which case we play this move of knight c 6

not directly attacking this pawn on e 4

but still fighting for central squares

such as d four and e 5 and now with the move of d 4

the Kennedy variation with e 5

and what to do if white plays d 5

with the link Springer variation

looking to kick our knight around

now in this case we got to bring this knight to e 7

and at first sight this may seem a little bit strange

as now our bishop and our queen cannot move

but the very next move in most cases

we're gonna swing this knight over to the square of g 6

and really fight for those dark squares on h

four and F4 as well okay

now in this video

we're going to be looking at four options from white

I included these both because of

well first off popularity

but also due to the fact that

I think we need to know what we're doing

against these options first off

we got this move of c 4

we're then going to be looking at knight f 3

simply looking to attack our pawn on e 5

we have the move of f 4

which by the way turns out to be a big mistake

and finally d six

which also turns out to be not that great for white

as well

but let's first take a look at this move of c 4 here

white not trying to break the game open

or do anything crazy like that

but just to take some space up

on the queen side of the board

well you know the drill

we're playing this move of knight g 6

fighting for those dark squares

and really the next objective

is going to be activating this dark squared bishop okay

we don't want to play a little passive move like d 6

and get our bishop trapped for the rest of the game

we're looking at squares like c 5 and b 4

and in most instances

we're going to play this move of bishop c 5

pouncing down on that f 2 pawn

but what happens if white plays a move like bishop e 3

well obviously bishop c 5 is

you know not an option

but now okay

we just play this move of bishop b 4 with check

attacking the opponent's king

and here if I move like night c 3

I personally

kind of like the option of taking that night

we don't have to

but it does double up White's pawn structure

and we now play a move like d 6 okay

now white here really does need to play the move of c 5

because if they don't do it

now we're gonna play this move of b 6

we're gonna have that option available

and now White's doubled pawns

are not gonna be able to make any progress

because we're gonna have a double pond

clamp on that square

so if white wants to play the move of c 5

they gotta play it now and if they do

we have a couple of different options

first off we have this idea of f 5

now this can lead to some crazy positions

but black is more than okay if we play it correctly

okay now this by the way is not the only option

we're gonna look at knight f 6 right after this

but okay let's say we play the move of f 5 okay

as a hippo defense player

as someone that plays uh you know

the King's Indian defense

someone like that might like this move of F5

this is what we're doing we're attacking e 4

and we're also looking at f 4

potentially in some instances okay

let's say here

white plays a move like bishop u 5 with check okay

we'll block if you take an f 5

we drop this knight back to e seven

and it's very interesting right

because we're down a pawn

and it seems as if white is just overrunning

us in this position but at the same time

White's pawn structure is absolutely terrible

we have double pawns in the f file

double pawns on the c file

this pawn on d file is very overextended

and an isolated pawn on a 2 as well

all of these highlighted pawns are not great for white

right maybe the pawn on f 2

the pawn on f 2 is solid but the rest of these

I mean these are just weak targets

uh really

these three pawns are the only pawns here

for white that aren't super weak

whereas for black

I mean our pawn structure is pretty much perfect right

so we are down a pawn but it's gonna be very hard

if not impossible for white to hold on

to all of these pawns that they've pushed

and pushed and pushed like crazy here

if I plays a move like queen h 5 with check

attacking our king we'll just side step right

you can take on d 7 we'll take back with the queen

you can even play a move like Rick b 1

attacking our pawn on b 7

we're gonna get tempo against that queen

play a move like b 6 here

uh by the way

if you play c 6 I mean

in that case we can just take on f 5

and we just even out the material

if you take on d 6 we're not gonna go crazy here

we're just gonna calmly capture back

we're attacking both f 5 with the queen and the knight

and we're also double attacking this pawn on d 5

white here is simply not gonna be

able to hold on to everything okay

so going back to that move c 5 f 5 is an option

very aggressive very dynamic

very sharp

what if you don't wanna go for something that crazy

well we have this move night of six right

there's absolutely nothing wrong with this you know

we attack that pawn e 4 and if white defends it

we can play a move like castle in kingside

if queen d 2 alright

we can bring that knight back uh

just looking to put some pressure on that pawn

and okay if they take we capture back

if I move like bishop b 5

we play queen c 7 knight c 5 here

I absolutely love this position for black

the computer puts it at just about dead

even if white plays this correctly however

I would take black here any day of the week

particularly because c 5 is so weak

and we have f 5 available as well

why is c 5 a weak square

or should I say a strong outpost for black

well because for the rest of this game

there's not going to be any pawns for white

that can kick this knight out right

there's no pawns on the d file that can do it

and no pawns on the B file that can do it either

and if you ever take this knight

we have a replacement and I mean gosh

talk about just cutting down on those dark squares

um again f 5 a great idea here night h 4 as well

slicing and dicing attacking that pawn on g 2

black here with a fantastic game so going back right

we have this move in 8 g 6

and we're often gonna be looking to play bishop c 5

but if white does play bishop e 3

make sure to throw in that check

and get that bishop out before you play the move of d

six right

and again going back

if bishop e 3 and we do play bishop e 4 check

one thing I want to warn you against is playing d 6

right away okay

this is a huge mistake because of queen a 4 check

and guess what we just lost our minor piece okay

now

you don't necessarily need to take the knight on c 3

in order to be okay

but I will say that you know having a bishop on b 4

it's gonna be tough to pull off d

6 without simply losing your minor piece here okay

so you'd probably want to castle first or something

you know

like so before you play d 6 so you don't lose that guy

but again if I see 3

I personally like just capturing that knight

right off the board okay

now okay

let's say here white plays a move like nice e 3

in that case alright

let's play Bishop c 5 right

come down on that square if white plays bishop e 3

that's not very good for white

we can just take and mess up their pawn structure

pretty bad if NF 3

we can now continue with NF 6 Bishop d 3

expanding on the queen side isn't a bad idea

play something like d 6 let's say a 3 is played here

we'll castle kingside

this is a position a type of position like this

you can get all the time okay

and here we're just gonna go over

some different ways that white can play this

this position is dead even

but I personally likes black

I like Black's position more

let's go over some things that white can do

and first off we're gonna start out with okay

what happens if white just goes back and forth

and back and forth now

I'm not covering this

because I think white will ever do that

I'm covering this

because it's also good to ask ourselves

not just okay

what if they do this what if they do that

but also what is our plan what is our game plan right

what are some things that we are trying to get done

in this game as opposed to just memorizing right

memorizing openings can be very helpful in fact

a lot of these lines I

I do recommend that you watch this video through

multiple times and really memorize these lines

but more than that

I want you to understand the ideas right

and if we don't have a game plan

for how this position can play out

it's often times not gonna work out too well okay

so what do we do if white kind of just sits around

what's a game plan what are some good moves

that can help us improve our position

well a move like h 6 doesn't hurt right

play a move like h 6 there's some ideas here

often times with h 6

we can look at moves like knight h 7 and f 5

that's one idea we're also covering the square of g 5

which is very helpful

if I move like kimchi 1 here

we can actually just play the move of night h 5 okay

and you know one thing that we got to be aware of

when bringing this knight to h 5

looking to come to f 4

very common idea in the Nimzo witch defense

by the way in this line

one thing that we gotta be aware of is this

move of night takes e 5 right

because here white is giving up a piece for a pawn

but they're looking to simply win this night outright

on h 5

the issue here for white is that we can just take this

this minor piece off the board

and sure in this position right here

we are down a pawn for a piece

but notice that this knight now has a new target

and that's the bishop on d 3

we simply capture this guy off

and y'all we're up a piece for a pawn

black here is simply winning this okay

so going back to night h 5

whenever you do play this

just be aware of a sack like night takes e 5

but if there's a bishop on d 3

we can take and guess what

we're attacking something else

which is exactly what we need okay

let's say here white plays a move like king h 1

which is a lot better you know

than playing knight takes c 5 or something like that

okay we bring this knight to f 4 right

always keep this in your tool bank

I mean your toolbox

you want to bring this knight here fighting

you know for this dark square outpost

and talk about a very active night right

let's say something like king G1 is played okay

let's activate our light squared bishop right

king H1 here we can actually sack on g two

whole idea being that we have night h 4 with check

and uh it's pretty crazy

the computer move here for white

is actually just taking that knight on h 4

which shows you just how much trouble white is in

because we can snatch off that queen

and uh okay

I mean just get that bishop out

we're plus four guys we have a queen

they don't this game is simply crushing for black okay

so we go back to castling kingside

so you know

one of the game plans that we can go with here

bringing this knight to F4 right

playing a move like h6

activating this light squared bishop

these are all good ideas that you can implement

in your games if you reach a position like so

which you probably will quite a bit

now what are some things that white can do

and how can we respond well

let's start out with this move Bishop g 5

what do we do in a situation like this

well we play h 6 and in fact

I love when white just decides to take on f six

because we capture back with the queen

and now

we really have great control of that f 4 square

g 3 is very weakening to White's position

and uh okay

I mean really in most instances

we're gonna look to throw our knight into that

F4 square

and if you kick that knight out in that instance

we can take on D3 play bishop h3 by the way guys

notice how we have the bishop air here right

we have two bishops and white has two knights um

as y'all know I'm a big fan of the knight

specifically in the endgame

but in a position like this

I mean we're slicing and dicing on these rooks

and when this rook moves

we're simply going to look to capture on f 2

White here is in major trouble

and the

computer move here is to actually just play knight h 4

and let us capture off that rook okay

so it it

it goes without saying that the black's position

here is simply better alright

so okay a move like bishop g 5

this is we're not worried about this okay

we're really not especially as bishop h 4

our knight attacks that square

I mean

bishop g 5 just kind of helps us out in all honesty

what else could white play

well let's look at a move like night a 4

attacking our bishop in this instance

we don't want to lose this minor piece

it's very valuable in fact

it's directly looking at the opponent's king

okay let's play bishop a 7 right

bishop d 2 or something like so night h 5 right

notice just how much this comes up right

uh again

if you play a move like night takes e 5

this doesn't work for white

we simply capture back with the knight

and we can capture this bishop off right now

or we could even play bishop g 4 with tempo

force a queen trade and then take the bishop on d 3

and here black is about minus 3 in this game okay

and going back

let's say white here doesn't go with night takes e 5

which is simply a blunder

but instead plays a move like Bishop takes a five

we have some options here

one of them is to take on F2 with check

so that we get this bishop back

but in fact the computer here actually likes us just

just playing night at 4 I mean

this is you know

minus 1.3 - 1.5 for black and we're down a pawn

which shows you just how much compensation black has

in a position like this

notice how this bishop cannot just go back and

try to attack our knight

because we would simply win that bishop on d 3

and okay if black you know

let's say white you know plays a move like bishop c 3

getting that bishop back okay

we play bishop g 4 right

pinning that knight if a move like h three

we'll just bring the bishop right back okay

bring that bishop right back uh to H5 and okay

I mean there's a lot of ideas

here that black has in a position like this

but notice that g 4 does not work here

trapping the bishop

because we can simply snatch off that pawn

snatch off the second pawn and uh okay

yet again Black's position is simply crushing here okay

going back to castle king side

what is another idea that white can try to play here

well let's look at the move of rook b one OK

we can play a move like Queen e 7

you can push all you want

we're just gonna take

drop our bishop back if you play knight a 4 OK

we'll drop back again to a 7

and if you play a move like c 5

my recommendation to y'all

don't go don't go crazy here

don't feel like you gotta take this pawn

you want to keep your pawn chain intact

and aim towards the king side of the board right

that's where our energy lies right

our light scored bishop is aimed towards that side

our dark

scored bishop is aimed directly towards the opponent's

king and we're often times looking at knight h 5

and knight f 4 ideas as well

we don't want to take here

and mess up our pawn structure

just play this move of bishop d 7 okay

now if white you know plays a move like like knight c 3

alright we'll continue playing in that case

you could even make an argument that

we're still not gonna take on c 5

we're gonna wait for white to take on d 6

and in that instance we'll simply capture back

we still have solid pawn structure

white has pushed a ton but for what reason right again

they pushed a ton but we decided that hey

we're gonna keep this pawn structure intact

and that's exactly what we did

so yeah

we just covered this move of c 4 in that instance

play knight g 6

and look to activate your bishop on c 5

and if okay

if white takes that away with a move like bishop e 3

throw on a check black in either case

with a great game what about this move of knight f 3

immediately attacking this pawn on e 5

well in that case

we're simply gonna continue with knight g 6

and I wanted to include this line

I think

this is actually one of the hardest lines for black

to deal with night f 3 followed by h 4

looking to just pounce us with h 5

if you get nothing from this video

in terms of memorization

know that against night f 3 and h 4

you gotta play h 5 we have to play this immediately

we cannot waste time with this

we gotta play h 5 to neutralize this pawn

and make sure that it can't go any further

now okay

let's say white here plays a move like Bishop g 5

we can now play knight f 6 in one instance

I mean you know

from one perspective by playing both of these moves

white here has great outposts like g 5 and f 5

but the same goes for black right

white in the same way has played h 4 and e 4

and now we as well have squares like g 4 and f 4

and our knights are already looking directly at it

so in one sense

I mean this bishop on g 5 does seem very annoying

and it kind of is but at the same time

white as well

has not got this square without sacrifices right

without you know

us potentially getting night f 4 or night g 4

or Bishop g 4 later on in this game

if a move like Night c 3

let's activate our our dark squared bishop right

play a move like d 6

you can castle queenside all you want

now we can play a move like Bishop g 4

and just like you're pinning our knight

we are now pinning yours

if you play a move like Bishop e 2

we can actually pin the second knight and yeah

I mean black here with an active game

notice here move like a 3

simply a mistake

because we can capture off that minor piece

and actually take on e 4 whole idea being right

if you move the queen we take the bishop we're up upon

and if you take our queen

we take yours if you take our pawn

we take your bishop with check

and if you take our minor piece

we snatch off your bishop with the rook

here we are simply up a pawn

and black with a winning position

so going back to Bishop b 4 a 3 does not really um

you know a 3 does help but I would say that you know

a move like Bishop d 3 first

could be a better idea for white okay

playing a 3 right away

it's just not gonna work for white

as we can take on c three

capture on e 4 and black

they're simply gonna go up a pawn

but if white plays bishop d 3 first

and then plays the move of a 3

well okay

night takes e 4 just literally doesn't work anymore

right I mean

white could just take with the bishop now

and everyone's wondering why

we just gave up a minor piece for a pawn

but what we can't play here is just to move

like bishop a 5 alright

just bring the bishop back something like b 4

this is only gonna weaken White's position and okay

I mean

if you bring your rook to the center of the board

I personally there's a lot of different moves here

I mean there's C5 works

that's a good move Rook C8 works

I personally kind of like c six

just kind of looking to chip away at that center

and a move like rook C8 here on the way

could be a very good idea

if white takes we capture back

and here we can actually continue with D 5

I'm not gonna go into this position

it is very complicated

but you can plug it into Stockfish

and kind of see the lines and variations that you get

but I think what you can see is the fact that okay

we're putting pressure on F3

we're pinning the knight on C3

we're attacking this bishop on C4

we're putting pressure on E4 as well and okay

if you plug it in black here is simply much better

very sharp position

but black here is gonna come out on top

see how that covers this move of knight f 3

in which case you see the move of h 4 okay

if you see that

you gotta play h 5 right away and from that point

I just encourage you to play calm right

develop your knight develop your dark squared bishop

make that an active minor piece

bring your bishop to g 4 and go from there

what about this move of f 4

what happens if white tries to steamroll us

in this type of position well

this actually turns out to be a huge mistake okay

this might seem a little bit scary

but we're not gonna take on f 4

we're instead gonna play this move of night g 6

and from a practical standpoint

I think white is in major trouble here

the best move for white is to play h 4

but in that case

we're simply gonna capture the pawn on f 4

and black there with the advantage

it turns out here that if white moves this pawn at all

and I noticed by the way

it is hard for white to defend it well

if white moves this pawn at all

by taking or playing f 5

Black there is simply winning this

first off what happens if white takes

well notice

by playing f 4

and by pushing that f pawn again to either square

this short side check

it's gonna be a great option for us OK

we're gonna throw in a check here

notice if you move the pawn trying to block us

we take on e 4 we slice and dice

we take your rook we're simply winning that

and going back if a move like king e 2

we take on e 4 with check

and if king d 2

we're still gonna take attacking both of these pawns

I mean if I move like night f 3

we're gonna take on d 5 and if I move like night c 3

we still want to win this pawn on d 5

getting a check right

we don't want to take on e five and then

you know let white start getting tempo on us

so we're gonna pin this knight

and then we're gonna look to take on d 5 with check

because again this knight cannot move

if we move like bishop d 3 here

we play d 6 Black here is more than doing well

all right

and going back to night g 6

okay what happens if I move like f 5

well I would argue this is even worse for white

because white didn't even get a pawn

and now okay

we play queen h 4 same idea if g 3

we're simply gonna win your rook on h one

and if I move like king d 2 here

we can actually play knight f 6 alright

it's kind of crazy uh

but we can just give up this knight

if I move like knight c 3

turns out that bishop b 4

here is a great option for black

and if you do take our knight okay

we take on e 4 check we're down a piece for a pawn

but this king is in major major trouble alright

if I move like king e 2 for example

queen f 2 with check king d 3

let's check that king again

let's check that king again

we're gonna keep chasing this king around uh

let's say I move like king d 3

here we actually have e 4 and this is a forced mate

okay king c 4

we have queen c 5 followed by queen b 4

and that's a game over and if king takes

we have knight c 5 with check

notice how White's only move here is king e 5 right

every other square

that this king could think about moving to

is taking away

so white has no choice but to come to e 5

and now we have four different checkmate options

um all of which are beautiful

but okay we have ourselves a game over there right

so d 6 there with the win and going back okay

let's say white doesn't go with king d 3

but they instead play king b 3

we continue chasing this this king around right

we have Queen b 6 to check turns out against king c 4

Queen a 6 is the best move

but notice as well I mean

if you take the night queen v 4 checkmate

that's a game over at the end of the day I mean

playing f 4 here might seem scary

but night g 6 and if this pawn moves at all

we have you know a short side check

and this isn't one of those positions where we're like

hoping white moves their pawn

and then if they don't we're simply winning

like no matter what white plays here

black has the positive edge right

even if they play a move like knight e 2 OK

we can take and if a move like Bishop takes I mean

there's a lot of things we can think about doing here

including taking and then playing queen f 6

attacking that minor piece attacking the pawn on B2

right if they play night back to D3

we throw in a check on H4 I mean

there's just so much that can happen here to white

that does not go in their favor

I'm taking black there any day of the week

and it ain't close and last but not least

I wanted to cover this move of d 6 okay

we just looked at the move of f 4

White trying to steamroll us on the

on the king side of the board

it turns out that White's king is the one

that ends up being the target there

because of that source side diagonal being weakened

but okay what about this move of d 6

White trying to attack our knight immediately

look we're not gonna take on d 6

we're just gonna continue with our usual plan

of playing knight g 6

and if you don't take on c 7

we're just gonna go up a pond right

we're not gonna take back with the C pond

because that weakens uh

I mean gosh

I mean that's actually pretty bad right

double ponds backwards ponds

d fives weak

but instead we're just gonna take back with the bishop

okay that's what we wanna do here and we're up a pond

white doesn't have much to show for it

and if you take on c 7 sure

d 5 is a little bit weak

because we don't have any pawn that can defend it

but in return we have great development

and let's say white plays a move here like night c 3

I'm just going off the most popular moves online OK

in online chess

alright we can play move like night of 6 right

or pin that night either option works Bishop g 5

most popular move okay

we play bishop b 4 right

Bishop takes f 6 most popular move alright

we take on c 3 with check alright

we take again with the queen

if I move like queen d 2

we simply take the rook and if I move like king e 2

knight f 4 we just won ourselves the game

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