Alekhine Quotes

I consider chess an art, and accept all those responsibilities which art places upon its devotees. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Chess first of all teaches you to be objective. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Chess is not only knowledge and logic. ~ Alexander Alekhine

For success I consider three factors are necessary: firstly, an awareness of my own strengths and weaknesses; secondly, an accurate understanding of my opponent's strengths and weaknesses; thirdly, a higher aim than momentary satisfaction. I see this aim as being scientific and artistic achievements, which place the game of chess on a par with other arts. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Alekhine's real genius is in the preparation and construction of a position, long before combinations or mating attacks come into consideration at all. ~ Max Euwe

Oh! this opponent, this collaborator against your will, whose notion of beauty always differs from yours and whose means are often too limited for active assistance to your intentions! ~ Alexander Alekhine

Alekhine is a poet who creates a work of art out of something that would hardly inspire another man to send home a picture post card ~ Max Euwe

I see my own style as being a symbiosis of the styles of Alekhine, Tal and Fischer. ~ Garry Kasparov

When Alekhine recognizes the weakness in his position he has a tendency to become very aggressive. Patient defence is not for him if he can see the slightest chance of creating an attack. Yet sound strategy often demands that you submit to the opponent's will so as to strengthen your weaknesses and get rid of defects in your game. ~ Emanuel Lasker

Combination is a soul of chess. ~ Alexander Alekhine

It would be idle, and presumptuous, to wish to imitate the achievements of a Morphy or an Alekhine; but their methods and their manner of expressing themselves are within the reach of all. ~ Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

Young players expose themselves to grave risks when they blindly imitate the innovations of masters without themselves first checking all the details and consequences of these innovations. ~ Alexander Alekhine

I can comprehend Alekhine's combinations well enough; but where he gets his attacking chances from and how he infuses such life into the very opening - that is beyond me. ~ Rudolf Spielmann

I think that for the highest achievements nowadays ... need to have the stable as a rock scientific base. And also need to own modesty. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Chess is a matter of vanity. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Never before and never since have I seen - and I cannot even imagine, such an amazing rapidity of chess thinking that Capablanca possessed in 1913-14. In blitz games he gave all the St. Petersburg players odds of five minutes to one - and he won. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Alekhine developed as a player much more slowly than most. In his twenties, he was an atrocious chessplayer, and didn't mature until he was well into his thirties. ~ Bobby Fischer

The retreat of a minor piece to the back rank, where it cuts the lines of communication between the rooks, is permissable only in exceptional cases. ~ Alexander Alekhine

You can become a big master in chess only if you see your mistakes and short-comings. Exactly the same as in life itself. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Playing for complications is an extreme measure that a player should adopt only when he cannot find a clear and logical plan. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Play the move that forces the win in the simplest way. Leave the brilliancies to Alekhine, Keres and Tal. ~ Irving Chernev

Capablanca was snatched too early from the chess world. With his death we have lost a great chess genius, the like of whom we will never see again. ~ Alexander Alekhine

When asked, -How is that you pick better moves than your opponents?, I responded: I'm very glad you asked me that, because, as it happens, there is a very simple answer. I think up my own moves, and I make my opponent think up his ~ Alexander Alekhine

I did not believe I was superior to him. Perhaps the chief reason for his defeat was the overestimation of his own powers arising out of his overwhelming victory in New York, 1927, and his underestimation of mine. ~ Alexander Alekhine

During a Chess competition a Chessmaster should be a combination of a beast of prey and a monk ~ Alexander Alekhine

I believe that true beauty of chess is more than enough to satisfy all possible demands. ~ Alexander Alekhine

Play on both sides of the board is my favourite strategy. ~ Alexander Alekhine

For my victory over Capablanca I am indebted primarily to my superiority in the field of psychology. Capablanca played, relying almost exclusively on his rich intuitive talent. But for the chess struggle nowadays one needs a subtle knowledge of human nature, an understanding of the opponent's psychology. ~ Alexander Alekhine

If you have seen one Alekhine game you've seen them all. ~ Bobby Fischer