Jan Gustafsson was once ranked 85th in the world, but he has always been keen to view chess not just as a professional player. He became a coach when he was 21, he is an expert in opening theory and a widely regarded commentator, and he worked as Magnus Carlsen’s second for three successive World Championship matches. Excerpts from an interview Gustafsson gave The Hindu in Goa:

The Candidates features a German for the first time since 1991.

We in Germany are rooting for Matthias Bluebaum though he is not one of the big favourites. It will be a close tournament. The Candidates is such a nervy affair, a long tournament. I think whoever qualifies, they will already have shown their worth in the Candidates and it will be a tough match for D. Gukesh. But Gukesh has gained experience, and you can see his preparation is so much better.

German chess seems to be in good shape. Vincent Keymer, who was Gukesh’s second for his World title match against Ding Liren, is the World No. 4. And you also have men like Alexander Donchenko and Frederik Svane.

We have had this group for a couple of years. We won the European Team Championship [tied for first place with Serbia before finishing runner-up on tie-breaks in 2023], but didn’t manage to win this time around. But, yeah, the young guys are getting even stronger. So we have a good group, but it’s about making the next step. They have had some special support, so it’s good to see it’s showing fruit.

How big is the emergence of Keymer as a potential World champion for German chess?

There are so many young guys who have potential to be the World champion, like Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Alireza Firouzja, R. Praggnanandhaa, and there are players like Javokhir Sindarov; and Andrey Esipenko is coming up. And I am sure I am forgetting five names. There are a lot of top players around in that 19 to 22 age group. And Arjun Erigaisi, too. But we are happy Vincent is in that group. And it is nice to be able to root for someone.

You were one of the founders of chess24.com, which was an excellent site to follow chess, with its easy navigation, attractive layout, the way the content was presented or how live games were streamed. But as has happened often in the past, the portal was bought by a bigger company and then killed.

Yeah, it is a bit sad. But I think there is still so much great chess content out there now. The world is changing a bit, so there is no shortage. Yes, I think we did a great job at chess24.

So why did you have to sell it?

I wasn’t involved in the business side of it.

What took you to chess24?

I knew some people. And it started as a project a long, long time ago. It was a fun ride. I find plenty of work and stuff to do in the chess world, but yeah, I miss some of the features of chess24 for sure.

You were very young when you became a coach. You also worked as a second to the world’s strongest player of all time, Magnus Carlsen. How did this happen?

I got too weak as a player. And I like being in the chess world, so I look for other work. I was a coach when I was 21. I was a coach at the World Junior Championships. In chess, it is normal that you have different roles.

It certainly is. How did the role with Carlsen in multiple World title matches come about?

I am not sure. Because of connections perhaps and the fact that I like chess openings. It was an exciting opportunity to work at some World Championship matches.

You worked with him for the first time for the 2016 match against Sergey Karjakin.

Yes, my work was more on the opening lines.

Were there any lines Carlsen wanted to work on in particular?

I was a bit of a specialist in the Marshall Attack after ‘e4 e5’, so we worked on that against Karjakin.

How did you find working with Carlsen?

I was mainly a workhorse somewhere far away. Of course, we spent some time, but I wasn’t so much in touch with Magnus physically. But everything was always great. And for a player like me, it is an honour to be involved with World Championship matches, the biggest stage in chess.

How big was Carlsen’s team in 2016?

Normally it is like three or four guys somewhere remote, and then the main second on site. That 2016 match was tough. He was behind in the match and he was a big favourite. So it wasn’t exactly a smooth ride. But he did come through in the end.

You worked with Carlsen again in 2018 for his World title match against Fabiano Caruana. It was a close affair, too.

Caruana was very strong then. Ratings were close and it was a very nervy match with all those draws [in the classical games]. We knew in the tiebreak, Magnus was probably going to be a big favourite, and he came through there, but it was very tough.

And you worked with him again in the 2021 World title match against Ian Nepomniachtchi.

That one went well. In the first six games, Nepomniachtchi was very well prepared and it was a very tense fight. But after Magnus won the first game, it was sort of smooth sailing. I have enjoyed working with Magnus. He is impressive in every aspect of the game. And he is a fun guy, too.

How do you find being a commentator?

I enjoy it. It varies day by day. I enjoy the chess world and going to tournaments, but I never enjoyed playing that much, so being a commentator for me is a great way to sort of stay in touch with chess.

And chess commentators are getting popular in places like India. Your colleague Peter Leko was talking of how shocked he was when he was recognised by a couple of Indians by just his voice in Goa.

Peter Leko is amazing. I can imagine him being popular enough to be recognised.

What made you turn to commentary?

In chess, if you’re not a world-class player, there are many different roles, and I like talking, so commentary was a natural fit.