- Overprotection is an idea Nimzowitsch discussed at length, but I don't hear a lot about it these days. Nimzo thought that some important central points should be not just protected but overprotected, and this would be a good thing.
- There is a concrete sense in which overprotection helps: if your weak e6 pawn is attacked three times and defended three times, you have to be careful to move the defenders only so far as they still protect e6. If you have four defenders of e6 with three attackers, you can move any defender whereever you like.
- I don't think that's what Nimzo meant. He talked about pieces getting 'energy' from being an overprotector, which is mysterious... (Amateurs-Nimzo) I am not alone in finding what Nimzo had to say baffling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORpb_85awV8 (A bit of Anglo-Saxon Empiricism from RN Coles: "Nonsense!" https://www.chesshistory.com/winter/winter154.html#10453._Jottings_about...)
- There is another sense in which we see energy given to overprotecting pieces, if the point being protected is a pawn, and the pawn moves. Then, the pieces in contact with the pawn might suddenly be released (Tal-Bronstein). (But if Nimzo had that in mind he would have said so or shown an example.)
Click [...] to see list of games
[Event "Uppsala"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1921.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Amateurs"]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, Aron"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B00"]
[Annotator "overprotection"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "1993.??.??"]
1. e4 Nc6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 f6 4. Bb5 Bf5 5. Nf3 Qd7 6. c4 Bxb1 {!} 7. Rxb1 O-O-O 8. cxd5 Qxd5 9. Bxc6 Qxc6 10. O-O e6 11. Be3 Ne7 12. Qe2 Nd5 {[#] Nimzovich comments that the Pd4 is effectively an isolated one. Black has blockaded the d4 pawn and the Bishop behind it. Nimzo used to get a bit mysterious about overprotection, but we can see that the d5 point is both...} 13. Rfc1 {...an outpost and a jumping-off point or channel for the Black pieces that can reach it, as well as fulfilling a blockading function.} Qd7 14. Rc4 Kb8 15. Qd2 Rc8 16. Ne1 Be7 17. Nd3 Rhd8 18. Qc2 f5 19. Rc1 g5 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Rxc5 Rg8 22. Qe2 h5 {!} 23. Bd2 h4 24. a4 g4 25. a5 a6 {[#] ! The knight on d5 supports c7 and can free the Rook for other duties. The White Bishop isn't really participating in the attack, and won't unless the a-pawn gets to a6 - hence the last move.} 26. b4 c6 27. Rb1 Qf7 28. Rb3 f4 29. Qe4 f3 30. Rc1 fxg2 31. Kxg2 Rcf8 32. Rf1 g3 {!} 33. hxg3 hxg3 34. f4 Ne7 35. Be1 Nf5 36. Rh1 Rg4 37. Bxg3 Qg6 38. Qe1 Nxg3 39. Rxg3 Rfxf4 40. Rhh3 Rxd4 41. Qf2 Rxg3+ 42. Rxg3 Qe4+ 43. Kh2 Qxe5 44. Kg2 Qd5+ {[#] 0-1 The d5 square remained pivotal to the end. 0-1 (44) Brod/Paulsson/Mandel-Nimzowitsch,A Uppsala 1921} 0-1
[Event "Tbilisi"]
[Site "overprotection"]
[Date "1956.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Tal, M."]
[Black "Bronstein, DI."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C96"]
[Annotator "overprotection"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "1956.??.??"]
{[%mdl 16]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Nc6 12. Nbd2 Qb6 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Nf1 Be6 15. Ne3 Rad8 16. Qe2 g6 17. Ng5 c4 {!} 18. a4 Kg7 19. axb5 axb5 20. Rb1 Na5 21. Nf3 Qc7 {[#] Every White piece is queuing up behind the e-pawn, waiting for...} 22. Nd5 {!} Bxd5 23. exd5 {[#] White's pieces control many central squares, and the Bishops have new avenues of attack.} Rfe8 24. Qxe5 Qxe5 25. Nxe5 Nxd5 26. Ra1 Nb3 27. Bxb3 cxb3 28. Bh6+ {!} Kg8 {?!} (28... Kxh6 29. Nxf7+ Kg7 30. Nxd8 Rxd8 31. Ra7 Kf6) 29. Nc6 Rc8 30. Rad1 Rxc6 31. Rxd5 f6 32. Rxb5 g5 33. Rxb3 Kf7 34. Rb7 Re6 35. Rxe6 Kxe6 36. h4 Rg8 37. f4 Bc5+ 38. Kf1 gxh4 39. Rb5 Rc8 40. f5+ Kd6 41. b4 h3 42. Rxc5 h2 43. Bf4+ {1-0 tal-bronstein (STEAN) 1-0 (43) Tal,M-Bronstein,D Tbilisi 1959 EXT 2018 [Tal,M]} 1-0