Looking for a realistic way to play for a win with Black against 1.e4 without taking unnecessary risks? The Taimanov Sicilian is a reliable system, and hence one of the best options out there! This video course offers you a complete repertoire for Black against the Open Sicilian: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6.
Free Video sample: Introduction
Free Video sample: 5.Nxc6
Looking for a realistic way to play for a win with Black against 1.e4 without taking unnecessary risks? The Taimanov Sicilian is a reliable system, and hence one of the best options out there! This video course offers you a complete repertoire for Black against the Open Sicilian: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6.
Free Video sample: Introduction
Free Video sample: 5.Nxc6
Compared to many other main variations of the Sicilian, the Taimanov Variation is a flexible option which doesn’t feature too many long, forced variations that you need to memorise in order to maintain the balance. In fact, the aim is to get a playable position out of the opening, which offers new opportunities to outplay the opponent in the long run. Due to its rock-solid formation, Black’s position is impregnable, and White players trying for a quick attack can easily falter. The old main lines are well covered, as are the latest trends and obscure attempts - so you won’t face any unpleasant surprises! The video course is complemented with 20 exercises to test your theoretical and practical knowledge, 10 positions to play out to develop a better feeling for these types of positions, as well as a database with more than 200 model games.”
Have you always wanted to play the Sicilian as Black, but been discouraged by the abundance of options for White? Here is the solution to becoming a lifelong successful Sicilian player! In a separate course, all the critical lines of the Open Sicilian (Taimanov Variation) were covered.
Free Video sample: Introduction
Free Video sample: 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.Bb5
In this course, all the relevant Anti-Sicilians are covered in depth. Starting with the move-order 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6, White has been prevented from playing a variation with 3.Bb5. Popular alternatives on move 3 are tackled first (3.b3, 3.g3, Kings-Indian Attack etc.). On the second move, White has many more options to deviate from the Main Lines, but since White often has the opportunity to transpose back to the Open Variation, it’s strongly recommended to study both volumes. The lines arising from the Closed Sicilian Variation with 2.Nc3 and the Alapin (with 2.c3 or 2.Nf3 e6 3.c3) are effectively countered as well, to avoid any move-order problems. Last, but not least, popular systems at club level, e.g. the Smith-Morra and Wing Gambit should no longer be feared! The video course has been complemented with 24 exercises to test both your theoretical and practical knowledge, 10 positions to play out to develop a better feeling for these types of positions, as well as a database with over 230 model games.
In many variations of the Sicilian Black’s king’s bishop is blocked in early by ...d7-d6, and then mostly occupies a modest place on e7 and in the early phase of the game has to content itself with defensive duties such as the protection of the d6-pawn and possibly the unpinning of the Nf6. That things can be different can be seen from the complex of variations around 2...e6, in which Black does without ...d6 and instead leaves the bishop’s diagonal open. Black mainly advances his game at first with moves such as ...a6, ...Nc6, ...Qc7, ...Nf6 and ...b5 and then decides, depending on White’s setup, what the best square for the bishop is. This complex includes the Kan Variation, the Paulsen and the Taimanov System, which are all characterised by great flexibility, including in connection with the possible move orders. Many strong grandmasters play these systems, e.g. Vassily Ivanchuk and world champion Viswanathan Anand.
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