Anish Giri vs Abdusattorov 'Game of the Week': Is It Really Chess News or Just a Course Sale?

These days a headline is circulating rapidly in the chess world — 'Game of the Week #745: Giri vs Abdusattorov.' Any chess lover's heart would leap at the names. Two of the world's top players, on the same board, and as the biggest matchup of the week. But as soon as you open and read the content, a big disappointment follows. In this article there is not a single move from the game, no evaluation, no result, and no indication of when or where the game was played. In fact, this is not a game review at all, but a commercial product page — a video course bundle by International Master Valeri Lilov containing six videos, dressed up with the names of two superstar players. First, it is important to understand what the content actually says. The main claim is that after 1.d4 d5, when White avoids playing 2.c4 — because the theory of the Slav, Semi-Slav, Queen's Gambit Accepted and Orthodox Defense is so heavy — White turns to systems like the Colle System, London System, Torre Attack, Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, Trompowsky Attack and Richter-Veresov. The author says these systems are 'not very ambitious' yet simultaneously 'extremely dangerous.' Black must be prepared for them. Six videos are built around this idea, offering one plan for each opening. Now let us examine this claim technically. First, it must be admitted that the problem is real. Mainstream Queen's Gambit theory has expanded so much that even club-level players seek ways to avoid it, and those very ways give birth to these 'anti-theory' systems. But the author's list contains serious inconsistencies. The Catalan Opening is by definition a 2.c4 opening — 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2. Placing it in the 'avoids 2.c4' category is technically wrong. Likewise, the Trompowsky and Richter-Veresov arise primarily against 1...Nf6, not against 1...d5, which is the article's own frame. That is, at least two systems in the list do not match the article's own promise. The second major technical point is that the Colle, Torre, London and Richter-Veresov are all linked to one another through transposition. A single Black setup, such as ...e6 and ...Bd6, or ...b6 and ...Nbd7, can meet all four. A professional repertoire would teach these together, but the 'one plan per opening' format sells the buyer four separate products where two would suffice. This is the biggest flaw in the product design. Moreover, the author's own evaluation is contradictory — 'not very ambitious' and 'extremely dangerous' cannot both be true at once. The truth is that these systems are dangerous to players who are unprepared, not in the engine's estimation. The author did not make this distinction clear. Now to the players. The title features Anish Giri and Nodirbek Abdusattorov, but throughout the article there is no rating, no form, no head-to-head record for either. Both names are used purely as attraction. One point is worth noting here — Giri is known for his extremely solid style, and low-theory systems like the London or Colle suit his style. So putting his name in the title seems logical, but the article does not support this logic with any concrete material. Abdusattorov, the 2026 World Rapid Champion and a rapidly rising young star, makes the matchup exciting by name, but his role too is confined to the title. The author, IM Valeri Lilov, is a well-known coach and content creator, but the basis of his expertise is not his rating but his productivity. This is normal in the chess education world, but the buyer should understand that this is not 'the latest top-level analysis' but 'practical club-level guidance.' From a competition perspective, this is not a tournament item at all. No championship cycle, no qualification path, no prize fund. Yes, the '#745' number in the title does give a signal — this is a long-running series, which if weekly would indicate roughly fourteen years of continuity. This shows there is a mature content pipeline behind the product. But price, publication date, sample material and distributor — none of these are available, making the commercial scale impossible to assess. It is also possible that this is repackaging of older material, since no date is mentioned. Looking at the broader industry landscape, this product exposes a major structural truth. Theory inflation at the top continues, and that very inflation creates demand for low-theory systems. That is, the growing complexity of main lines itself keeps creating the market for such products. But in this list only the London System genuinely holds at the 2700+ level. The Trompowsky is partially relevant, while the Colle, Torre, Blackmar-Diemer and Richter-Veresov are mainly club-level products. Calling them all 'extremely dangerous' together is an exaggeration. On the other hand, this product also shows that players below grandmaster level can adopt an 'IM-as-publisher' model for income in chess, and this model has reached industrial scale. Speaking of risks, the biggest risk in this article is the large gap between title and content. The title promises a top-level game, while the content sells a general survey. The second risk for the buyer is redundancy — paying separately for four transpositionally linked systems when a single Black setup can answer them all. Third, no technical claim is verifiable, because there are no moves, no engine data, no sample. In the long run the biggest threat is AI and engines, which can easily automate this kind of 'a plan for each opening' content. The conclusion is clear. This is commercial instructional material dressed in the garb of a top-level game review. Its value as chess news is close to zero, but its significance as a signal of the chess teaching economy is modest yet real. Those who want to draw conclusions about Giri's or Abdusattorov's form from this article should be careful — nothing about them here is authentic. And those thinking of buying should first ask for a free sample, check the table of contents for overlap, and see what date the material is from.