Hi, and welcome to my second project for chess24! For those of you familiar with my first series on the King's Indian Defence, you have my favourite repertoire for Black against 1.d4. In this series I offer you my favourite against 1.e4. The Taimanov (also known as the Paulsen) arises after the moves:
1. e4 c5 2. ♘f3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. ♘xd4 ♘c6 5. ♘c3 ♕c7
For a long time the Taimanov never appealed much to me, as it's a bit slower than other lines in the Sicilian like the Najdorf and the Dragon, which tend to be sharper. But the variation underwent a renaissance in 2013 and I became interested in the opening after studying the games of Russian GM and former European Champion Vladimir Potkin.
We will examine all principal lines White can play, and offer you recommendations against each one, as well as give you a general feeling of how to play this opening and handle the common structures that arise. First off, let's look at the English Attack, one of the most common and universal ways White can confront the Sicilian. Enjoy!
This eBook is part of the video series The Taimanov Sicilian, available for €13.99 (or $14.99). If you want to see and hear Robin provide detailed instruction on this opening, hop over to our Video Series area. A chess24 Premium Membership gives you access to all the videos and eBooks in our growing library.
Robin van Kampen provides a complete repertoire for Black in his favourite opening against 1.e4 — the Taimanov Sicilian. He explains why this slightly slower setup has been growing in popularity in recent years and is a great practical choice for Black, since it's more about ideas rather than concrete variations you have to memorise.
To grasp the key ideas and structures of the Taimanov Sicilian so you can play it with confidence as your main weapon against 1.e4. You'll also know what to do if your opponent tries to avoid your preparation on move 3.
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