[Event "Hastings"] [Site "Hastings"] [Date "1934.12.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Max Euwe"] [Black "George Thomas"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D69"] [Annotator "Stockfish 18"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "1934.12.27"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [Source "ChessBase"] {D69: Queen's Gambit Declined: Classical Main Line} 1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 Nbd7 7. Rc1 c6 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Nd5 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. O-O Nxc3 12. Rxc3 {This opening is so well analyzed that black can now choose from an array of 8 possible moves, the most popular being the one he plays.} e5 {With this movre black has managed to free his position and the challenge for white is how to maintain the initiative. White has a wide choice, but depending on what he plays, this position tends to be either drawish of favors white.} 13. Nxe5 {Captyring on e5 is one of the drawish lines. Maintaining the tension with 13.Qc2 ir 13.Bb3 increases white's winning chances.} Nxe5 14. dxe5 Qxe5 15. f4 {Out of the 11 different moves white has tried here this is the most aggressive. Euwe has played the i\opening in a safe, solid fashion, but at the time in a way that offers him the opportunity to keeo the initiative..} Qe7 16. f5 b5 {This is a small, but significant, mistake because the further advance of white's f-Pawn will lead to the breal up of black's K-side/} (16... Qf6 17. e4 a5 18. Rf2 a4 19. a3 Ra5 20. Ba2 Re5 { Black has cleverly gotten this R into play, but slightly better would have been 20...Re8} 21. Qxa4 Qh4 22. Bb1 {Black should now play either 22...Rd8 or 22,,,Rfe8. Instead he makes a tactical blunder.} Rxf5 {White is winning because black has no good way of dealing with the pressure on f8. Note that white's backward e-Pawn was of no significance. Babula,V (2515)-Guerra Tulcan, L (2352) Khanty-Mansiysk RUS 2010} 23. g3 Rg5 24. Ba2 Qg4 25. Rcf3 {etc.}) 17. Bb3 b4 18. f6 {Demonstrating the weakness of black's 16th move. This move rips open black's K-side and now Euwe concentrates all his pices foir the attack. White is slightly better.} gxf6 19. Rxc6 Qxe3+ 20. Kh1 Bb7 {Much better would have been 20...Be6 challenging white's B. Thomas has underestimated the threat to f7.} 21. Rcxf6 $16 Qe4 {This puny mate threat is easily dealt with.} 22. Qd2 {[%CAl Rf6f7]} Kh8 23. Bxf7 Rac8 24. R6f2 {Ir is now essential that black prevent white's Q from going to g5 so he must try 24...Qg4} Rcd8 25. Qg5 Rd6 { This allows a mate in 6, but there was nothing he could do to save the game.} 26. Bd5 {Black resigned. Accuracy: White = 100%} 1-0