The Sozin Attack is White's most overtly aggressive counter to the Sicilian. White puts his bishop on c4 and often follows up with direct play against the black king. Unless Black defends with the utmost precision, the bishop's influence often fuels a deadly attack leading to a cascade of sacrifices and a brutal king hunt. The Sozin set-up can be employed against the Classical Sicilian, the Najdorf, and even the Scheveningen. Mikhail Golubev is a young grandmaster who has employed the Sozin with devastating effect throughout the whole of his adult chess career. Here he explains how White carries out that attack in its various forms (including some relatively positional lines), and presents in detail the theory of all its variations, including the razor-sharp Velimirovic Attack.
Mikhail Golubev
Born on 30 May 1970 in Odessa, Ukraine.
International Chess Grandmaster since 1996.
Champion of Ukraine in 1996.
In 1999 won the Open Championship of Switzerland.
Active as chess journalist since 1998.
In October 2006 - February 2007 member of the Board of the Association of Chess Professionals.
Author of chess books: Easy Guide to the Dragon (1999), The Sicilian Sozin (2001), Understanding the King's Indian (2006).
Website: http://mikhailgolubev.wordpress.com
