This lesson will focus on the London System specifically, and I will also briefly mention the Colle System, which has the same pawn structure, and the Torre Attack which is an interesting alternative; however, these ideas can be applied to many openings. We will discuss ideas such as:
* Pawn Breaks- Using a pawn to try to gain space and/or weaken your opponent's structure.
* Optimizing your Pieces- Developing your pieces to active squares is a key part of the opening. In the middlegame, you get them to squares that are even more active and help you achieve your goals.
Before we begin, let's quickly review the setup that White is going for in each:
The Colle System
Note: There is a variation called the Zukertort Colle where White will play b3 instead of c3 to Fianchetto his Dark Square Bishop on the Queenside. I have not included this in this lesson as the structure is slightly different.
The London System
The pawn structure is identical to the Colle system, but on move 2 or 3, White puts his bishop on f4 before playing e3 and blocking the bishop in.
The Torre Attack
Almost identical to the London, but White developed his bishop to g5 instead of f4. In this case, it is important that you develop the Knight to f3 on move 2 and then the Bishop on move 3. In the London, this does not matter. Moving the Bishop to g5 on move 2 is actually a different opening called the Trompowsky. For an example of this, please see my round 2 game of the Midwest Holiday Class, where I played against it and won, posted about a month ago.
1. The thematic e4 Pawn Break: This is an idea in all three openings. Here is the pawn structure that white goes for in the opening:
White will start the game with d4. Since Black most commonly starts with either d5 or Nf6, White cannot play the move e4 in the beginning of the game and have both pawns in the center. Rather, White must prepare e4 and try to break in the center with the move in the middlegame.
Here is an example game played by Magnus Carlsen, who is the current world champion, using the London System:
The well timed break in the center with e4 gave Carlsen the initiative, which he never let go of. Also note how Carlsen found a more active option after Black played f5. Rather than retreating, Carlsen traded the Queens then made his own threat which was worse than the threat that his opponent made.
Sometimes in Chess, sadly, you do have to retreat and give up the initiative. However, before you do that, be sure to consider other options; sometimes you can find a counterattack that will keep your attack going!
The same pawn break is typically used in the Colle System:
White initially developed his Queenside Knight to d2, but after the e4 pawn break, the Knight got to the center of the board. By doing this, White was able to optimize his piece!
2. Placing the Knight on e5
Sometimes breaking with e4 isn't the best option. With accurate play, Black can prepare his own pawn break before you can. Black is planning to push his pawn to e5. Before he does that, you can often put your Knight there and block it!
Here is a missed tactic from a game from Grandmaster Gata Kamsky, who is an expert in the London System. He still went on to win this game, but he missed an amazing tactical shot early in the game.
Bringing the Knight to e5 gives White a lot of attacking potential while completely stopping Black's plans of breaking in the center himself with e5.
In both the Torre Attack and the Colle System, both of these ideas: Pawn to e4 and Knight to e5 are very common for White and are things that you should be looking to play when you use these openings. I strongly encourage you to look at games from the databases on Chess.com or Lichess to learn more about these ideas and how to play these openings effectively when it comes to middlegame ideas.
This lesson will focus on the London System specifically, and I will also briefly mention the Colle System, which has the same pawn structure, and the Torre Attack which is an interesting alternative; however, these ideas can be applied to many openings. We will discuss ideas such as:
* Pawn Breaks- Using a pawn to try to gain space and/or weaken your opponent's structure.
* Optimizing your Pieces- Developing your pieces to active squares is a key part of the opening. In the middlegame, you get them to squares that are even more active and help you achieve your goals.
Before we begin, let's quickly review the setup that White is going for in each:
The Colle System
Note: There is a variation called the Zukertort Colle where White will play b3 instead of c3 to Fianchetto his Dark Square Bishop on the Queenside. I have not included this in this lesson as the structure is slightly different.
The London System
The pawn structure is identical to the Colle system, but on move 2 or 3, White puts his bishop on f4 before playing e3 and blocking the bishop in.
The Torre Attack
Almost identical to the London, but White developed his bishop to g5 instead of f4. In this case, it is important that you develop the Knight to f3 on move 2 and then the Bishop on move 3. In the London, this does not matter. Moving the Bishop to g5 on move 2 is actually a different opening called the Trompowsky. For an example of this, please see my round 2 game of the Midwest Holiday Class, where I played against it and won, posted about a month ago.
1. The thematic e4 Pawn Break: This is an idea in all three openings. Here is the pawn structure that white goes for in the opening:
White will start the game with d4. Since Black most commonly starts with either d5 or Nf6, White cannot play the move e4 in the beginning of the game and have both pawns in the center. Rather, White must prepare e4 and try to break in the center with the move in the middlegame.
Here is an example game played by Magnus Carlsen, who is the current world champion, using the London System:
The well timed break in the center with e4 gave Carlsen the initiative, which he never let go of. Also note how Carlsen found a more active option after Black played f5. Rather than retreating, Carlsen traded the Queens then made his own threat which was worse than the threat that his opponent made.
Sometimes in Chess, sadly, you do have to retreat and give up the initiative. However, before you do that, be sure to consider other options; sometimes you can find a counterattack that will keep your attack going!
The same pawn break is typically used in the Colle System:
White initially developed his Queenside Knight to d2, but after the e4 pawn break, the Knight got to the center of the board. By doing this, White was able to optimize his piece!
2. Placing the Knight on e5
Sometimes breaking with e4 isn't the best option. With accurate play, Black can prepare his own pawn break before you can. Black is planning to push his pawn to e5. Before he does that, you can often put your Knight there and block it!
Here is a missed tactic from a game from Grandmaster Gata Kamsky, who is an expert in the London System. He still went on to win this game, but he missed an amazing tactical shot early in the game.
Bringing the Knight to e5 gives White a lot of attacking potential while completely stopping Black's plans of breaking in the center himself with e5.
In both the Torre Attack and the Colle System, both of these ideas: Pawn to e4 and Knight to e5 are very common for White and are things that you should be looking to play when you use these openings. I strongly encourage you to look at games from the databases on Chess.com or Lichess to learn more about these ideas and how to play these openings effectively when it comes to middlegame ideas.