When One Pawn Redraws the Battlefield: Rossolimo Structures with GM Evgeny Romanov
After 4.Bxc6 bxc6 in the Rossolimo, both sides sign a long-term contract: Black takes the two bishops, White the healthier pawn structure. Which way the imbalance tilts then depends on a handful of small pawn decisions. In Middlegame Understanding – Rossolimo Structures – Part 1, GM Evgeny Romanov treats those structures as the real protagonists of the game — the frame inside which every plan either works or quietly fails.
Understanding over memorization
Romanov's premise is stated plainly. In these positions, recalling concrete lines matters far less than grasping the ideas behind them — once you understand the structure, the plans follow on their own. That is the thread running through all eight chapters, and it is what separates this course from a database of variations to memorize.
He also brings a practitioner's honesty that is rare in this kind of material. Where the engine prefers White, he cautions that the evaluation often slips later and that these assessments shouldn't be overestimated. He is equally honest about the Black side — openly calling one of these structures unattractive to defend, while still showing how the bishop pair keeps Black in the fight. What you get is a strong grandmaster's own judgment, not just an engine's evaluation.
Eight structures, one recurring tension
Each chapter isolates a single structure and the plans that belong to it. The connecting tension never changes — White's superior pawns against Black's two bishops and search for open diagonals — but the details shift with every pawn move:
- 5.d3 — the fixed, closed center: White freezes Black's pawns with c4 and targets c5 via Na4 and Ba3; Black hits back with the central breaks ...f6 and ...c4.
- 3...e6 and White's e5: the pawn on e5 claims the dark squares and a lead in development; Black challenges it with ...d6 or ...f6 to pry the position open for the bishops.
- e5 met by ...d6 and the central exchange: Black accepts weakened pawns for the bishop pair, with ...c4 a recurring pawn sacrifice for activity.
- The ...c5/...c6/...d6/...e5 wall: Black builds a broad, nearly weakness-free center and prepares ...f5; White answers with f4, a3–b4, or c3–d4.
- ...f5: Black grabs kingside space while White expands with e5, sometimes even e6 — each side eyeing the other's advanced pawns as targets.
- e5 against the 3...g6 setup: White's space supports a kingside attack, while Black undermines the center and is often glad to steer toward an endgame where the bishops speak.
- c3–d4 and central expansion: White seizes the center and Black must counter with ...d5; the c5-square becomes a fine knight outpost and c6 a standing target.
- ...d5: Black takes space and frees the pieces, but the c5-pawn can lose support, inviting a patient White siege.
The technical scope of the course:
- 8 typical structures arising after White captures on c6 and Black recaptures with …bxc6
- 8 chapters, each covering one structure through several model games
- 30 test positions
- Video instruction
- Multilingual PGN (English, German, French, Spanish)
Where the course sits, and where to go next
This is Part 1, and the investigation carries straight on into Part 2. Readers who take to this structural method will recognize it from Romanov's other explorations of recurring middlegame frameworks — his work on Nimzo-Indian Structures, Stonewall Structures, and Mastering the Maroczy Bind. Each covers a different opening and stands on its own rather than continuing this one, but all share the same conviction: learn the structure, and the right moves stop being something you memorize.
If you have ever drifted in a Rossolimo middlegame — sensing the imbalance without knowing which side it favors or how to press it — this is where that uncertainty turns into a plan. Work through the eight structures, test yourself on the thirty positions, and the next time you reach 4.Bxc6 bxc6, you'll already know what the position is asking for.