Originally Posted by ChessMastered.com
Well, a4 has another strong purpose here, simply based on the fact that the King's rook is on f8. (This is actually a very good example of a "Positional Consideration".)
Black's King appears to be in worse shape than White's. Therefore, White wants to exploit this by opening-up the Queenside, thereby weakening Black's King even more.
In my opinion, of course.
Oh, and welcome Glenn!  |
I 100% agree with this assessment of the move. It is especially popular in blitz and bullet matches. What white is saying is, "I know now that you cannot castle kingside, so you'll probably go queenside if you do in fact castle, so I think I'll shove the a pawn in that general direction - maybe keep your king in the middle longer!"
SO, to answer the question, "Isn't piece development more important in the opening?" - YES, of course, but as was brought up, Rf8 is NOT a normal opening move, and therefore staying in "book" might be wacky here, as well.
Remember, play the position, play the board! If someone continues to develop pieces when there is a mate in the air because of the opponent's blunder, then it's kinda silly, yea?
Hope this helps. a4 is a psychological, as well as space-gaining, move in my opinion!