I play way too much blitz chess. It rots the brain just as surely as alcohol.

We have a large underclass in Britain, and a fairly low standard of education. Our best universities are extremely good, but a very significant proportion of the British population that comes out of compulsory schooling with very low standards of education.

Chess is ruthless: you've got to be prepared to kill people.

I play way too much blitz chess. It rots the brain just as surely as alcohol.

I am acutely conscious, from vast experience in opens, that guys around, say 2100 or more can definitely play chess and that one often has to work very hard to beat them.

A good sacrifice is one that is not necessarily sound but leaves your opponent dazed and confused.

I know that with perfect play, God versus God, Fritz versus Fritz, chess is a draw.