Clearance - Tarrasch French I - Guimard Variation 3...Nc6

The Guimard Variation of the Tarrasch French (1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 Nd2 Nc6!?) provides Black with an opportunity to avoid many of the stale and uninteresting lines of the 3...c5 variations, and also sidesteps the lines most under scrutiny by theoreticians. Since Guimard's advocacy in the pre-war years, a number of notable players have adopted the line, including Belyavsky, Botvinnik, Hubner, Hug, Korchnoi, Larson, Ljubojevic, Petrosian, Short, Vaganian, and most recently, Ian Rogers. These are all players known for their determination and fighting spirit. Even Bobby Fischer went down to defeat against 3...Nc6!

Eric Schiller has collected a vast amount of material on this once-obscure line, presenting over 150 complete games and a great deal of theoretical opinion, together with some new ideas. The enterprising advocate of the French Defense will find a wealth of ideas which can be developed into an exciting weapon against the Tarrasch Variation, either as a primary defense or as a supplement to the main lines. Those who play the French as White may be surprised to find that the typical lines against the Guimard may not be sufficient for an advantage, but perhaps can find new ideas for White here as well.