Emmanuel Neiman is one of France’s most respected and experienced chess coaches, a coach whose decades of experience have shaped players at all levels: from club competitors to title players. Having worked with a variety of students, Neiman especially loves her work with children with autism spectrum disorders. And what he values ​​most about his coaching journey are the lasting friendships he has made.

One story best illustrates his practical, student-first approach. On the eve of a game that determines the club’s title race, one of Neiman’s students is paired with a lower-ranked player known for his tricky opening game. Fearing an opening trap, Neiman convinced his pupil the same morning of the game to break from his usual repertoire and adopt Petroff and Nimzo-Indian against 1.e4 or 1.d4 respectively. Even though his opponent surprised him with the King’s Gambit, he remained calm, applied what he had learned, and won smoothly.

For Neiman, the lesson is clear: flexibility, confidence, and clear ideas are often more important than we think.

Based in Paris, Neiman is also a renowned author thanks to books such as Invisible Chess Moves, co-written with Yochanan Afek, and Tune Your Chess Tactics Antenna. Both works, originally published by New In Chess, are considered modern classics for tactical training and are available on Chessable.

Neiman shares his philosophy and tips in this interview:

What is your chess training philosophy?

Allows students to do without a coach, and have fun. I believe that a coach helps in the beginning, but really strong players have to work on themselves and make their own decisions, even regarding training, after being taught well.

The main task of the trainer is to show students how to work efficiently on their own.

Of course emotional support can be important especially in tense situations such as at major championships but I don’t think this is specific to chess – sports psychologists can do that.

Suppose a player only has 3 hours a week to practice chess. How should they spend their time?

Tactics. Provided they are playing, the three hour tactic (half an hour a day) is the best way to get better results.

What are the biggest improvement factors for players under 1200 (Chess.com)? Under 2000?

Under 1200: Play as much as possible and practice your tactics.

Under 2000: This is a combination of playing, practicing and learning (typical opening/middle/late game).

More experienced players should do more practice, newest players should play more.

What is your preferred way to improve your skills at opening? What chess opening approaches are you trying to teach your students?

1. Pick an opening, and learn a few lines.
2. Analyze the play of a strong player, someone who is skilled at openings.
3. Play as many blitz games as possible using openings to practice position; if it is a group, prepare the typical selected positions and play, then discuss, work on specific items and play again.

I guide my students in choosing openings according to their own style and show original variations. Then, I try to teach each student to learn new theories and things on their own. Viewing today’s Chess.com news and matches every day will provide them with the most important news from elite players.

What is your preferred way to improve at the end of the game?

1. Play typical positions, such as rook and pawn against rook (for Beginners) or a typical 4 vs 3 rook endgame, then review the game and play again.
2. Solve the selected studies and positions.
3. From time to time reviewing the basic theory, and adding some new theoretical positions. Always check the most important ones by playing them on blitz.

Is there anything else you would like to say to ambitious chess developers?

Ambitious players should play ambitiously: no opening traps, a real repertoire that allows them to play with all kinds of pawn structures. You have to be ready for any position, whether attacking or ending the game – real chess!

---

FM Emmanuel Neiman on Chessable

Both Neiman tactics courses were originally printed by New In Chess.

• Invisible Chess Moves explores why certain winning ideas remain invisible even when they are right in front of us. Neiman and co-author Yochanan Afek categorize and explain the psychological, positional, and geometric reasons behind these blind spots. This award-winning work was praised by chess legends Boris Gelfand and Yasser Seirawan.

• Tune Your Antennas Chess Tactics is endorsed by IM John Bartholomew, one of the founders of Chessable, who specifically requested it to be published on the platform in its early days. This course focuses on teaching players not only how to calculate tactics but also when and where to look for them. Neiman identifies important signals that a winning opportunity is near and trains readers to recognize these signals in real play.

Recently, Neiman published Level Up Your Pawn Play, a practical course in which he shows how pawn structure, timing, and subtle pawn movements can secretly shape the entire fight. Based on the games of elite players including Magnus Carlsen himself, Neiman shares rules and techniques to better understand the pawn game.

Check out the author page!