Chess Patterns ❯ Control of Center ❯ Center Occupied by Pieces

Center Occupied by Pieces

A Center Occupied by Pieces occurs when one or both players occupy the squares at the center of the board with pieces rather than pawns. This often happens after central pawns have been exchanged or moved aside (as shown in the diagram above). When pieces are placed in the center, they become much stronger, as they can control the most squares and can quickly move from one side of the board to the other.

Ideas for when the Center is Occupied by Pieces: (1) Use your pawns to support your pieces and to extend your control of key squares around them, (2) Watch out for tactical shots, as centralized pieces often create opportunities for combinations, (3) Counter your opponent's centralized pieces with timely advances of your pawns.

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Master the Center Occupied by Pieces

When we started adding a playful touch to chess learning, we looked through thousands of videos and hundreds of books to find the best resources out there. Here's our curated selection of the best content we encountered on positions where the Center is Occupied by Pieces. We also included some smaller creators who are growing fast and we believe deserve your attention. Check out these resources if you want to master this type of center.

Why is it Important to Control the Center in Chess?
Have a look at this nice short by Chess Knowledge with H1 to get a very clear 60-second example of why it’s much better to have your pieces in the center rather than on the sides.

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The Importance of Controlling the Center | Chess Strategy
In this video by Chessfactor you get to see in great detail how much more powerful each individual piece is when placed in the center. Ideal for beginners.

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How to have a Master level understanding of the center in chess.
This excellent video by growing YouTube channel Robert Plunkett's Chess Lab explains in a very clear way how to use the center to quickly transfer your pieces from one side of the board to the other. Highly recommended.

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Elements of Positional Evaluation*
Get to know the nuanced power of your pieces, one by one, with this fantastic classic by Dan Heisman. A lot is covered in this book, including the crucial importance of the center. Follow all the moves with ease thanks to the interactive e-book reader.

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Mastering Opening Strategy*
This is the second book in the interesting "Mastering..." series by Johan Hellsten. Very well-organized and packed with examples. An entire chapter is dedicated to the importance of the center. Highly recommended. The interactive e-book reader allows readers to easily follow all the moves.

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