Grandmaster Alexander Panchenko (1953-2009) was one of the most successful chess trainers in the Soviet Union, and later in Russia. He ran a legendary chess school that specialised in turning promising players into masters. Panchenko provided his pupils with systematic knowledge, deep understanding and the ability to take practical decisions. This book contains a collection of inspiring lessons on the most important middlegame topics: attack, defence, counterplay, realising the advantage, obstructing the plans of your opponent, the battle of the heavy pieces, and much more. Panchenko formulates easy-to-grasp rules, presents a large number of well-chosen examples and ends with a wealth of practical tests. It is hard to give better advice for ambitious chess players than to follow this tried-and-tested road towards mastering the chess middlegame.
