The story behind the game
Euwe’s queenside pawns advance while Alekhine keeps active rooks. After exchanges on the sixth rank, White’s e-pawn becomes a dangerous c-pawn. Study how White coordinates the queen, rook and bishop around that change, and why a passed pawn can make a material offer practical.
Take these ideas to your next game
- Create a pawn target before advancing past it.
- Track a passed pawn through every capture.
- Use a knight jump to change the defender’s obligations.
- Calculate rook exchanges together with the resulting pawn advance.
Read the complete annotated game
Full game transcript, including the result and the answers. Original explanations by chessgames.info; game score from the sources below.
b5 challenges Black’s queenside structure. The recorded exchange cxb5 and axb5 leaves White with an advancing pawn on the b-file. Black’s rook remains active, so the breakthrough is useful only if White’s heavy pieces can support the resulting passer and keep the king safe.
b6 ties Black’s rooks to an immediate queenside problem. The pawn attacks c7 and gains space near the rook on b8. Black responds by activating the queen on b7. Compare that counterplay with White’s knight route and rook entry squares before advancing the pawn again.
Nd5 changes the exchanges available in the centre. Black captures the knight in the recorded line and White recaptures with the e-pawn. That creates a white pawn on d5. Follow the pawn carefully: after the later rook exchanges on c6, it is this pawn that becomes the dangerous c-pawn.
Qe4 is the strongest saved candidate. Euwe played Rc6, inviting the rook exchange and dxc6. The saved comparison prefers Qe4 first, with Rc6 appearing later in the principal variation. The historical offer still illustrates the passed-pawn idea, but it is not the required answer in this exercise.
Result: 1-0. The recorded score ends here; it does not imply checkmate.
Think through the turning points
Move 31: Break open the queenside
Which pawn advance challenges the pawn on c6? In the game: b5. b5 challenges Black’s queenside structure. The recorded exchange cxb5 and axb5 leaves White with an advancing pawn on the b-file. Black’s rook remains active, so the breakthrough is useful only if White’s heavy pieces can support the resulting passer and keep the king safe.
Engine-supported alternatives
b5 cxb5 · +0.71 · depth 17
a5 Rxb4 Rxb4 Qxb4 a6 Qa5 Rb1 Rd8 Rd1 Rb8 · +0.63 · depth 17
fxg6 hxg6 b5 cxb5 axb5 Kg7 b6 Rb8 Rfb1 Rb7 Ba6 Rb8 · +0.25 · depth 17
Move 34: Push the passer
Which pawn move advances the b-pawn to the sixth rank? In the game: b6. b6 ties Black’s rooks to an immediate queenside problem. The pawn attacks c7 and gains space near the rook on b8. Black responds by activating the queen on b7. Compare that counterplay with White’s knight route and rook entry squares before advancing the pawn again.
Engine-supported alternatives
Nd5 · +1.66 · depth 18
b6 Qd7 Rfb1 Kh8 Rb5 Qd6 b7 Kg7 Kh3 Qe6 Rb6 Qd7 · +1.40 · depth 18
Ra1 Qc5 Ra6 Kg7 b6 Rd7 Na4 Qc1 Qc3 Qxc3 Nxc3 Kh6 · +1.38 · depth 18
Move 36: Use the central knight
Which knight move attacks the knight on f6? In the game: Nd5. Nd5 changes the exchanges available in the centre. Black captures the knight in the recorded line and White recaptures with the e-pawn. That creates a white pawn on d5. Follow the pawn carefully: after the later rook exchanges on c6, it is this pawn that becomes the dangerous c-pawn.
Engine-supported alternatives
Nd5 Kh8 Rfb1 Qg7 Kg2 Qd7 Qc3 Nxd5 exd5 Bf6 Qc7 Qd8 · +2.42 · depth 20
Rb5 Rxb6 Rxe5 Qg7 Kg2 Bd2 Nd5 Nxd5 Rxd5 Rb2 Qd3 Bb4 · +1.26 · depth 20
Na4 h5 Qb3+ Kg7 gxh5 Nxe4 Bf3 Qd7+ Bg4 Qe7 b7 gxh5 · +1.05 · depth 20
Move 39: Centralize before the rook exchange
Which queen move reaches e4 before the rook exchange? In the game: Rc6. Qe4 is the strongest saved candidate. Euwe played Rc6, inviting the rook exchange and dxc6. The saved comparison prefers Qe4 first, with Rc6 appearing later in the principal variation. The historical offer still illustrates the passed-pawn idea, but it is not the required answer in this exercise.
Engine-supported alternatives
Qe4 Re8 Rc6 Kh6 Bd3 Qa7 Qh1 e4 Ra1 Qb8 Bxe4 Kg7 · +0.97 · depth 16
Bd3 Rc8 Rxc8 Qxc8 Qf7+ Kh8 Be4 Rb7 Qf2 Kg7 d6 Rd7 · +0.31 · depth 16
Rc4 Rc8 · +0.22 · depth 16
Rc6 · +0.12 · depth 23
Every piece has a part to play.
Euwe’s queenside pawns advance while Alekhine keeps active rooks. After exchanges on the sixth rank, White’s e-pawn becomes a dangerous c-pawn. Study how White coordinates the queen, rook and bishop around that change, and why a passed pawn can make a material offer practical.
Look a little deeper
Play on the board or type your move. Strong engine-supported alternatives receive credit.
Future moves stay hidden until you continue.
Try a different path.
Select a key moment to explore legal continuations supported by saved Stockfish analysis.
Accessible evaluation values & provenance
Stockfish 17.1 · 75,000 nodes per position; 1,000,000 at key moments. Actual depth 12–21. Positive centipawns favour White; mate scores remain separate. Selective search is evidence, not proof.
Download complete engine evidence