Grandmaster Secrets: Counterattack! (Winning Chess)

A step-by-step guide to turning defence into victorySuperb defensive technique is a hallmark of all great chess-players. With a few deft counterstrokes, they not only deflect what looked like an overwhelming offensive, but also expose the darker side of their opponent’s build-up. Is this sheer black magic, or are these skills that ordinary players can develop?While some of the key defensive skills follow well-established principles, modern players ally them with an appreciation of chess dynamics that is a good deal more subtle. Zenon Franco provides a wide-ranging course in how to handle difficult positions, seeking not only to hold them together but to go on the counteroffensive, exploiting to the full the commitments and concessions the opponent has made to launch his attack. The methods he advocates are varied: often a countersacrifice is the key, while simplification can also be employed as a subtler, but equally deadly weapon.Chapters include:Lasker, the Master of Defence and CounterattackRefuting Premature AttacksFighting Blow by BlowRegroupingProphylactic ThinkingSimplificationZenon Franco is a grandmaster from Paraguay who now lives in Spain. He is an experienced chess trainer, his most notable pupil being Paco Vallejo, now one of the world’s top grandmasters, whom he taught from 1995 to 1999. He has written five previous books for Gambit, including Chess Self-Improvement and The Art of Attacking Chess.“An Impressive Book ... One can still learn a lot from Emanuel Lasker’s tenacity in defense and Jose Raul Capablanca’s art of simplification, but examples of modern players, such as Kramnik and Carlsen, are also presented. Overall, it is a great book for tournament players.” – GM Lubomir Kavalek, Washington Post“Approximately 60 exercises are peppered throughout the book to test the reader’s counterattacking skill. ... GM Franco has clearly worked hard; a similar effort from the student should result in a greater understanding of various types of middlegames.” – Sean Marsh, MarshTowers“the author knows not only his historical but also his contemporary sources, and is able to introduce a topic (not only counterattack, but also psychology in chess) in a subtle but compelling way. ... a guide to all possible ways of countering an attack, such as simplification and prophylaxis, logically ordered by theme, each followed by lots of good exercises. ... depth and insightful explanations go hand in hand.” – Arne Moll, ChessVibes“What really makes this book different from early books on defending are the more than 60 exercises that Franco offers the student to solve, all of which relate directly to the material covered and feature detailed solutions with both the correct answer and plenty of explanatory prose.” – IM John Donaldson, USA Team Captain“Very detailed analysis and the content is extremely informative. There’s some excellent practical tips and techniques to be picked up in this work and I think reading this material will improve any player’s understanding of the game in general.” – GM Stephen Gordon“Teaching skills in counterattack and defence is a difficult topic, but this book provides much material which could be used in this training.” – Paul Dunn, Australasian Chess“covers a subject we would all love to master – Counter-Attack! Franco gives us several wise lessons, such as regrouping and prophylactic thinking, all explained using stunning games as examples” – Bab Wilders, Nederlands Dagblad Read more