Chess School Quiz Challenge #9

Challenge

The pieces are developed, the king is castled to safety, both sides have done a good job. At the start of the middlegame Alexander Donchenko was faced with the question of how to proceed with the black pieces. What should he play, what plan should he pursue?

Solution

Let's imagine that White is allowed to make a few more moves and Black has to watch. The white rook on b1 is a clear indication of what would happen if White had a free hand: White would expand on the queenside – first b3-b4, then c4-c5, then open lines and invade the black camp. 

Due to the white space advantage and the closed center, it would be easy for White to carry out this plan. Black, in his pressed position, would find it difficult to transfer forces to the queenside to defend himself there. 

A top grandmaster like Alexander Donchenko grasps a situation like this at a glance. And draws the right conclusion: Black needs counterplay as quickly as possible if he doesn't want to be overrun on the queenside. Ideally, he will succeed in putting pressure on the powerful white chain of pawns in the center and/or staging an attack on the other wing. 

Donchenko played the best move, one that prepares both: 1…Nf6-h5! Yes, in doing so he broke perhaps the most famous rule of chess:

Because of their short range, knights should actually not loiter on the sidelines, but should have a central effect, ideally anchored on an outpost. In this respect, the rim-and-dim motto makes a lot of sense. But chess is not an easy game. Sometimes the specific circumstances require you to violate guiding principles or rules of thumb. Like here. 

The most important thing for Black is to get his own game on the board immediately, to keep White busy so that White cannot carry out his plan in peace. To do this, Black needs to use the pawn break ...f7-f5, and he can only do that if the knight clears the f-pawn's path. In the next move, Black will play...f7-f5, undermining the white center and getting ready for a kingside pawn storm. 

The h5-square is only a staging post for the knight. From there, a magnificent outpost on f4 awaits it, so it will certainly not be left on the sidelines.