Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they do not lead to an immediate win or draw but will focus more on the right plan so we recommend that you spend 5 to 10 minutes considering the position.
There will be one better plan (and move) and at least one weaker plan (and move) with other plans (and moves) assessed as being somewhere in between.
Martin Simons welcomes your feedback on the weekly quiz and any game submissions you may have for inclusion.
In today’s position, kindly submitted by Peter Anderson, you have White alongside the future World Chess Champion, Anatoly Karpov, and your opponent is the strong German Grandmaster Wolfgang Unzicker. The game was played in Nice in 1974 and you are about to play your 24th move.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Rb8 15.axb5 axb5 16.b4 Nb7 17.Nf1 Bd7 18.Be3 Ra8 19.Qd2 Rfc8 20.Bd3 g6 21.Ng3 Bf8 22.Ra2 c4 23.Bb1 Qd8
Your options are:
A) Play 24.h4 to attack Black on the kingside and threaten the immediate h5.
B) Play 24.Bh6 to remove Black’s dark squared bishop which is a good defensive piece and only then attack on the kingside.
C) Play 24.Rxa8 as the a-file is unimportant then White can concentrate on kingside activities.
D) Play 24.Nh2 to prepare for an f4 break.
E) Play 24.Rb2 to avoid any rook exchanges as Black is cramped and White’s a2 rook may be needed for a kingside attack.
F) Play 24.Ba7 to block the a-file, restrict Black’s counterplay and only ‘open’ it again when White is ready.
