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The retreat of a minor piece to the back rank, where it cuts the lines of communication between the rooks, is permissable only in exceptional cases.

Alexander Alekhine

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Alexander Alekhine
Age: 53 †
Born: 1892
Born: October 10
Died: 1946
Died: March 24
Chess Player
Chess Theoretician
Jurist
Translator
Writer
Moscow
Russian SFSR
Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine
Cutting
Minor
Pieces
Minors
Cases
Cuts
Lines
Exceptional
Back
Retreat
Chess
Piece
Rooks
Communication
Rank

More quotes by Alexander Alekhine

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The purpose of human life and the sense of happiness is to give the maximum what the man is able to give.
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Combination is a soul of chess.
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You can become a big master in chess only if you see your mistakes and short-comings. Exactly the same as in life itself.
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Play on both sides of the board is my favourite strategy.
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As a rule, so-called positional sacrifices are considered more difficult, and therefore more praise-worthy, than those which are based exclusively on an exact calculation of tactical possibilities.
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Young players expose themselves to grave risks when they blindly imitate the innovations of masters without themselves first checking all the details and consequences of these innovations.
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For my victory over Capablanca I am indebted primarily to my superiority in the field of psychology. Capablanca played, relying almost exclusively on his rich intuitive talent. But for the chess struggle nowadays one needs a subtle knowledge of human nature, an understanding of the opponent's psychology.
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The infallible criterion by which to distinguish the true from the would-be strategist is the degree of originality of his conceptions. It makes little difference whether this originality is carried to excess, as was the case with Steinitz and Nimzowitsch.
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In my opinion, a master is morally obliged to seize every sort of opportunity and to try to solve the problems of the position without fear of some simplifications.
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Psychology is the most important factor in chess.
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Chess, like other arts, must be practiced to be appreciated.
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During a chess tournament a master must envisage himself as a cross between an ascetic monk and a beast of prey.
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Chess will always be the master of us all.
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A lifetime in not enough to learn everything about chess.
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Chess for me is not a game, but an art. Yes, and I take upon myself all those responsibilities which an art imposes on its adherents.
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The fact that a player is very short of time is to my mind, as little to be considered as an excuse as, for instance, the statement of the law-breaker that he was drunk at the time he committed the crime.
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Never before and never since have I seen - and I cannot even imagine, such an amazing rapidity of chess thinking that Capablanca possessed in 1913-14. In blitz games he gave all the St. Petersburg players odds of five minutes to one - and he won.
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During a Chess competition a Chessmaster should be a combination of a beast of prey and a monk
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I think that for the highest achievements nowadays... need to have the stable as a rock scientific base. And also need to own modesty.
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Playing for complications is an extreme measure that a player should adopt only when he cannot find a clear and logical plan.
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