The Process of Decision Making in Chess Volume 2: Practice positions and solutions. Position 4.1

Sort:
Spochman

Challenge position 4.1 from the book, black's move:

White has a critical square in black’s camp, e4, which creates a significant discomfort for black, having to commit two pieces to defend the critical square’s occupant. Therefore, as a defensive application of the critical squares theory, black should consider pushing e3! in an attempt to eliminate the critical square’s burden.
Challenge: calculate the e3 line and reach a conclusion regarding its viability.