Make your chessboard a special gift
Add a personal engraving or gift wrapping with one click. You can remove these extras anytime in the cart.
This Play Like a Grandmaster (2nd edition) – Aleksander Kotov is a classic chess book devoted entirely to the middlegame, the phase where many games are decided. It is aimed at players who want to understand positions more deeply, plan ahead and calculate variations with greater confidence.
What the book covers
Kotov presents the key ideas of positional play in a clear, structured way. He explains how to assess a position, build a plan and recognise the elements that make up a combination. He also gives practical guidance on thinking at the board, including how to analyse variations and deal with the kinds of problems that arise in tournament play.
This focus on the middlegame makes the book a useful complement to opening and endgame study, helping connect theory with the decisions that matter during a game.
Inside the book
The text combines theory with carefully selected games by world champions and grandmasters, all annotated in detail. That makes it easier to see how the ideas work in practice at a high level, rather than only in principle.
Each chapter ends with exercises for independent analysis, so you can test your understanding as you go and develop your own thinking over the board.
Why choose this edition?
Aleksander Kotov brings together positional ideas, practical examples and training material in one volume. The result is a book that remains relevant for club players, competitors and anyone who wants to take chess improvement seriously.
- Author: Aleksander Kotov
- Edition: 2nd edition
- Product type: chess book
- Focus: middlegame
- Approach: positional play, planning, combinations and variation calculation
- Content: annotated games by world champions and grandmasters
- Exercises: each chapter ends with exercises for independent analysis
- Number of pages: 222
- Finish: softcover
Tangible precision
Each move strengthens curiosity, concentration, and self-confidence.

