Learning the Catalan Setup and its Thematic Plans and Patterns · Training Game

December 29, 2023 NHaselton Uncategorized

Hanging PawnsFri, December 29, 2023 7:59amURL:
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The Catalan is a great opening for white! It leads to rich middlegame positions in which there are many possible pawn structures you can transpose into, which is what makes the g3 Catalan so interesting on all levels.

Playing the Catalan forces you to become familiar with multiple structures and a vast number of must-know middlegame plans and patterns such as the IQP

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 { D02 Queen’s Pawn Game: Symmetrical Variation, Pseudo-Catalan } c6 4. Bg2 e6 5. O-O Be7 6. c4 dxc4 7. Ne5 Nbd7 8. Nxc4 Nb6 9. Ne5 O-O 10. Nc3 c5 11. e3 cxd4 12. exd4 Nbd5 13. Bd2 Rb8 14. Rc1 a6 15. Qb3 Qd6 16. Na4 Rd8 17. Ba5 Re8 18. Nb6 Bd7 19. Nxd5 Nxd5 20. Bxd5 b6 21. Nxd7 Qxd7 22. Bc6 Qd8 23. Bb4 { Black resigns. } 1-0
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