'Secret' Gambit Repertoire For White (part three)

THERE are many gambits for White after 1.e4 e5, two of the best-known being the King's Gambit (2.f4) and the Danish Gambit (2.d4 exd4 3.c3).

I am recommending a line so little-known that I reckon most chess players would struggle to name it, and an even larger proportion would struggle to spell the name correctly even if they vaguely knew it*.

It starts with the moves 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4!?

White has a very good chance of getting this on the the board as 2...Nf6 is easily the most-played reply to the Bishop's Opening (2.Bc4) - it occurs 67.6% of the time in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database.

But 3.d4!? is considered so dangerous that Larry Kaufman, in his classic book The Chess Advantage In Black And White (McKay 2004), cited it as a reason for his recommending Black meet the Bishop's Opening with 2...Nc6.

You can understand his point - 3.d4!? scores 59% in Mega20, and has had the seal of approval of being played by Magnus Carlsen.

Here is a rather embarrassing example of how quickly things can go wrong for Black.

Chris Rice (166 BCF) - Spanton (ungraded)

North London Spring 1989

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4!? Nxe4?!

This is probably a mistake already, although Mega20 has 13 examples of it being chosen by players rated 2300+.

4.dxe5 Bc5?

Bad. Probably best is 4...c6 to stop White's next.

5.Qd5!

A simpler way to an advantage, albeit not as good as the text, is the prosaic 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Qd5+ etc.

5...Bxf2+ 6.Kf1 Qh4

The only move that prevents mate and defends both of Black's en-prise pieces.

7.Qxf7+ Kd8 8.Nc3 Nxc3 9.Nf3 1-0

The final position - Black either loses the queen or allows 10.Bg5#

So what should Black play?

Here are Black's most-popular responses in Mega20.

Black declines the second pawn with 4...Nc6

3...exd4 4.Nf3

Probably premature is 4.e5?! thanks to the reply 4...d5.

The position after 4.Nf3 can also arise from a Petrov move-order: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4.

4...Nc6

Declining the second pawn is normal, but I will cover the critical 4...Nxe4!? below.

5.e5

We have reached a mainline position that also arises in the Two Knights Defence: 1.e4 e5.2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.e5. Clearly, if you know your opponent is unfamiliar with the Two Knights, eg he meets the Italian Game (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4) with 3...Bc5, there is a good chance he will already be out of his known theory.

5...d5

This is often the crucial reply in double-e pawn openings when White plays e5.

6.Bb5 Ne4 7.Nxd4 Bd7 8.Bxc6 bxc6

More than 5,000 games reach this position in Mega20, with White scoring a healthy 55% by continuing 9.0-0.

White's most obvious plan is to launch a kingside attack (Black will almost certainly castle short), using his kingside pawn-majority. But endgames should also favour White as Black has queenside weaknesses.

Black grabs the e pawn

4...Nxe4!? 5.Qxd4 Nf6 6.Nc3!?

More popular is 6.Bg5 but the text scores much better in Mega20, is preferred by my main analysis engines Stockfish12 and Komodo11.01 and has been the choice of strong players including Frank Marshall, Boris Avrukh (2625) and Ruifeng Li (2535).

6...Nc6 7.Qh4 Be7 8.Bg5

White scores 52% in this position from a small sample size in Mega20. The engines reckon White has full compensation for the pawn deficit, which should give good practical chances.

Black gives a check

4...Bb4 5.c3

5.Bd2!? is a playable alternative, eg 5...Bxd2 6.Nbd2 when White's lead in development gives decent compensation for Black's extra, but doubled, pawn.

5...dxc3 6.bxc3

Again White has an interesting alternative, this time with 6.0-0, which has been played by Ruifeng Li and Josef Přibyl.

6...Bc5

Some strong players have tried 6...d5!? After 7.exd5 Bd6 8.0-0 0-0 the game Josef Přibyl - Vladimír Tichý, Prague U26 Championship 1968, continued 9.Bg5 Bg4 10.h3 Bh5 11.Nbd2 h6 12.Bxf6!? Qxf6 13.Ne4 Qf4 14.Nxd6 cxd6!? 15.Qd4 Qxd4 16.Nxd4 with perhaps a tiny edge for White (1-0, 59 moves).

7.e5 d5

The only move, eg 7...Qe7? fails to 8.0-0 Ng4 9.Bg5.

8.exf6 dxc4 9.Qe2+!?

This seems more effective than 9.Qxd8+ Kxd8 10.fxg7 Re8+.

9...Be6 10.fxg7 Rg8

Alexandra Kosteniuk coolly castled here in a blitz game, but also interesting is a suggestion from the engines: 11.Ng5 Qe7 12.Nxe6 Qxe6 13.Qxe6+ fxe6 14.Nd2!?

Black develops in Italian-style

4...Bc5 5.0-0

Equally popular is 5.e5!?

5...0-0 6.e5 Ne4?

This is the commonest move in Mega20, but it is a losing mistake. Black should try 6...d5, when Alexandra Kosteniuk (2557) - Antoaneta Stefanova (2500), Huai'an IMSA Women's Blitz (Jiangsu, China) 2017, saw 7.Bb3!? Ne4 8.c3 Bb6 9.cxd4 when White is better, but the game was drawn in 46 moves.

7.Bd5 Nxf2 8.Rxf2 d3 9.Qxd3 Bxf2+ 10.Kxf2

Material is almost level (Black has rook and pawn for two minor pieces), but White's lead in development and the bishop-pair on an open board give a big advantage, according to the engines.

Black immediately hits back in the centre

4...d5!? 5.exd5 Nxd5

This line was tested as far back as Harry Pillsbury - Frank Marshall, Paris 1900, which continued 5...Bb4+ 6.c3 Qe7+ 7.Be2!? dxc3 8.bxc3 Bc5 with a roughly level game (but 0-1, 30 moves).

6.0-0!?

This seems stronger than the more-popular 6.Qxd4.

6...Nb6!?

Other moves are more-usually seen, but the engines reckon this is Black's best try.

7.Bg5! f6

This ugly move is virtually forced, eg 7...Be7?! runs into 8.Bxe7 Qxe7 9.Re1 Be6 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.Nxd4 etc.

8.Re1+ Be7 9.Bb3

White has a pleasant advantage as Black dare not capture the g5 bishop, eg 9....fxg5? 10.Nxg5 Rf8 (the engines' second-best line for Black runs 10...Qd6?! 11.Nf7) 11.Qh5+ g6 12.Qxh7 with a winning attack. Best play, according to the engines, continues 12...Qd6 13.Nd2 Kd8!? 14.Nf7+ (14.Nde4 is also very strong) Rxf7 15.Bxf7 when White has more-or-less regained his sacrificed material and has an ongoing attack.

Black holds on to the d4 pawn

4...c5!? 5.0-0 Nc6 6.Ng5 Ne5

Not 6...d5? 7.exd5 Nxd5 8.Qh5 g6 9.Qf3.

7.Bb3 h6 8.f4! hxg5 9.fxe5 Qc7 10.Bxg5 Qxe5 11.Bf4

Black remains a pawn up, but it is doubled and White has more than enough compensation.

Black avoids 2...Nf6

There are 27,941 examples in Mega20 of Black playing 2...Nf6 after 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4.

The next most-popular moves are 2...Nc6 (recommended by Kaufman) with 7,112 games and 2...Bc5 with 3,954 games.

In both cases I suggest White continues 3.Nf3.

After 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 the game has transposed to the Two Knights Defence considered above under Black declines the second pawn with 4...Nc6.

Black could avoid this with 4...Nxe4?!, but then 5.dxe5 is strong. Even worse is 4...Nxd4? 5.Bxf7+! etc.

If Black instead plays 3...Bc5 we reach the starting position of the Giuoco Piano. We are also likely to reach this position from the move-order 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Nf3 Nc6.

White could continue with Evans' Gambit (4.b4!?) or with 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Nc3!?, but blacks should be prepared for these gambits.

Instead I am recommending 4.0-0, which is almost always met with 4...Nf6, after which 5.d4!? is an interesting gambit.

Black has three main responses.

A) 5...Nxd4?! 6.Nxe5 0-0 7.Be3 Ne6 8.Bxe6 Bxe3 9.Bxf7+ with a winning advantage for White.

6....0-0 is overwhelmingly the most-popular try in Mega20, but in view of what is a semi-forcing losing line for Black, Stockfish12 and Komodo11.01 give 6...Qe7!?, after which the simplest way to an advantage for White is 7.Bxf7+ Kf8 8.Nd3.

B) 5...exd4 6.e5 d5 7.exf6 dxc4 8.fxg7!? (Nigel Short has played this move, which the engines agree is slightly better than the more-popular 8.Re1+) Rg8 9.Bg5!? (again the preference of Short and the engines over the very-slightly more-popular 9.Re1+) Be7 (this is most popular and is best, according to the engines) 10.Bxe7 Kxe7. The king capture is more-or-less forced, according to the engines, but now White gets a good game with 11.Re1+.

C) 5...Bxd4!? (this far-from-obvious move is almost certainly Black's best reply) 6.Nxd4 Nxd4 7.f4 d6 8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Bg5. White has the bishop-pair and open lines for a pawn. Most popular now is 9...Be6 but 10.Na3 gives White full compensation, according to the engines. They suggest 9...Qe7, one point of which is ...Qc5 might come with a nasty threat. It is not clear how White should proceed. Komodo11.01 gives 10.Na3, which has proved most popular in practice; Stockfish12 suggests the prophylactic 10.Kh1!? An interesting alternative, only appearing once in Mega20, is 10.Qd3!?, which deals with the ...Qc5 threat by protecting White's light-square bishop. The engines reckon best-play then goes 10...Be6 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.Bxf6 gxf6 13.Nc3 c6, when Black is still a (doubled) pawn up but is under continuing pressure. One plausible line given by Stockfish12 runs 14.Rf2 Rd8 15.Qe3 Qc5 16.Qxc5 Nxc5 17.Raf1 Nd7, when Black still has a slight material edge but his pieces are uncoordinated and White has full compensation, according to both engines..

*1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4!? is the Urusov Gambit, named after 19th-century Russian Prince Sergei Semyonovich Urusov.