I'll happily participate and comment if you start posting analysis on this line. I just cannot analyse it deeply on my own right now because i have more urgent things to finish first.

It is understandable mistake. The idea of playing Bf4-e3-a3 without the N on f3 is something that we are going to see played heavily soon. I predict that also soon we are going to see it defused (by Kramnik, or Gelfand himself probably!) but i cannot but admit that this and the similar Bf4 systems are disturbing for a Black player. Maybe ...b6 is a universal solution? Anyway, this is another subject that doesn't fit with the threads name...

In the "Kasparov on Modern Chess" book i read that Kasparov never lost a game in the Tarrasch Defense (even training ones!) untill the Karpov match. After feeling that playing the Tarrasch against him is a bad strategy he began looking at the Grunfeld with Adorjan. I feel that if the 9...c4 line was more known back then , this was the move he would play as it is much more in line with his style.By the way,  Jacob keeps winning games in Glasgow league and Danish league in the weekends in the same aggresive style! (Keep an eye for future QC newsletters!).

2 things i'd like to say about the recent Chessbase Magazine 146 issue. First of all BPaulsen said that the QGD system i mentioned is analysed by Postny. This was not the system i was reffering to (see Gelfand-Aronian from the latest Tata Steel). Second and most important is that there is an article that deals with the 6.dxc5! line of the Tarrasch Defence. I don't believe that this article can compare with the book because it doesn't mention all of the critical lines (!) but it offers some material on the second best move, the ...Bf5 gambit which is not so bad as a practical try. We rejected it because we couldn't prove compensation, but Lane also thinks that Black is fine there (from a recent chesscafe article of his), as well as ECO of course (i believe that the sources i mentioned just copy ECO's conclusions). Maybe in the future i'll have a second look at it (the ...Bf5 line) and maybe i'll propose Jacob to say a couple of things in a future newsletter. But as we are a live foroum here i can propose to analyse this line (6.dxc5 d4 7.Na4 Bf5) and find out if Black has adequate comp or no.

A certain A Karpov Not that he remotely refuted it of course, but playing against it really did suit his style wonderfully well. 
(and Kasparov did go 0/2 with it the first two times he tried, so an obvious effect on his confidence from that.).

Pionist wrote on 02/10/12 at 16:12:42:


7...cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bc5.

Since white hasn't played Bg2 his development is awkward, and he has little better than 9.e3 there, a move he doesn't want to play. Black is fine.

Chessexplained wrote on 02/10/12 at 09:57:44:

Formally speaking ..... 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 d5 could also be called a Tarrasch setup. It isn't very good though,.

Vass wrote on 02/10/12 at 09:26:31:

There is 1.e4 too.
More specifically: the Neo-Catalan 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 (2.g3 intending the KIA is more or less an 1.e4 opening) e6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.b3.
Coincidentally this is Delchev's recommendation in his new book on the Réti. He remarks (see the excerpt) that 6.d4 is a standard Catalan, but c5 7.cxd5 exd5 is going to be a normal Tarrasch.

Ametanoitos wrote on 02/10/12 at 08:57:16:


GM E. Postny is covering Aronian's line in CBM 146.

...It would be nice if white could get something tangible beyond fleeting pressure.