In round one - the full game cane be seen at https://beauchess.blogspot.com/2022/01/marianske-lazne-round-one.html - I reached with white, by an unusual move-order, the starting point of the Vienna Gambit.
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| Position after 3.f4 |
I have had this position, with white and black, 16 times, and on the previous 15 occasions the continuation was 3....d5. which occurs 7,319 times in ChessBase's 2022 Mega database.
Second-most popular is 3...d6, appearing 2,291 times, but my opponent in Mariánské Lázně played 3...exf4!?
This occurs 969 times, the earliest being a Gioachino Greco game or composition from 1620.
I replied, à la Greco, with 4.d4?!, but that is strongly disliked by the analysis engines Stockfish14.1 and Komodo12.1.1.
They prefer 4.e5, which is easily the main move in Mega22.
Black has only two reasonable-looking replies, although nine other moves occur in Mega22, including 4...Ng4?? (11 times) and 4...Nd5?? (seven times).
A) 4...Qe7?! (180 games)
The idea is to avoid having to immediately retreat the king's knight, but the text only puts off a necessary evil and meanwhile invites the white queen's knight to later come to d5 with tempo.
After 5.Qe2 Ng8 6.Nf3 the engines reckon Black's best-try is 6...Qe6!?
However after, for example, 7.d4 Bb4 8.Bf4 White has restored material equality, is ahead on development and has the lion's share of the centre.
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| Position after 8.Bxf4 - White is much better |
B) 4...Ng8 (441 games)
This is effectively forced, and White's reply of 5.Nf3, developing a piece, supporting e5 and preventing ...Qh4+, must be best.
Black has two obvious plans: (i) hold on to the extra pawn, (ii) challenge the white centre.
B1 5...g5
The engines at first like 6.Bc4 and 6.d4, but they come to prefer the most-popular response in Mega22, 6.h4, albeit at times fluctuating between h4 and d4.
Black should reply 6...g4. which gives at least equality against every continuation except the brave 7.Ng5!
B1.1 The key point is White can meet 7...h6?! with 8.Nxf7 Kxf7 9.Qxg4 d5 (what else?) 10.Qxf4+, when, for a knight, White has two pawns and a full-scale king-hunt.
A likely continuation is 10...Ke8 11.Be2 (threatening Bh5+ in some lines; also strong is11.Bb5+!? c6 12.Rf1) 11...Be6 12.0-0 Bg7 13.Bh5+ Kd7 14.Bf7!? Qe7 15.Nxd5 with excellent winning chances.
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| Position after 15.Nxd5 - White seems to be winning, but the whole line is very sharp |
B1.2 Instead of 7...h6?! the engines give 7...d5 8.exd6 Bxd6 9.Bc4 (the only move to keep an advantage, according to the engines).
After 9...Qe7+ 10.Qe2 Be6 11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.Qxe6 White has got the pawn back and has the better position.
Alternatively 9...Nh6 10.0-0 0-0 11.d4 f3!? leaves White with a pleasant choice between recovering the pawn immediately with 12.gxf3 and building an attack with 12.Nce4.
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| The line with 9...Nh6 may be Black's most-promising in variations where Black holds on to the extra pawn, but still seems very good for White |
B2 5...d6
Attacking the white centre has a more-modern feel to it than the materialistic lines.
After 6.d4 dxe5 White should avoid 7.Nxe5? Qh4+ in favour of 7.Qe2!, which seems better than the more-popular 7.dxe5, but interesting is Stockfish14.1's 7.Bb5+!? c6 8.Bc4.
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| Position after 7.Qe2! - it occurs 13 times in Mega22 but blacks have tried eight different moves |
B2.1 Stockfish14.1 reckons Black's best is 7...Be7, when 8.Qxe5 Nf6 9.Bxf4 c6 leaves White with an edge, according to the engines, after 10.Bd3 or 10.Bc4. But Black should beware the plausible 9...Qd6?!, when the engines reckon 10.Bb5+ Bd7 11.0-0-0 is positionally winning for White.
B2.2 Komodo12.1.1 suggests 7...Be6, when 8.Bxf4!? exf4 9.d5 Qe7 10.dxe6 Qxe6 11.Qxe6+ fxe6 12.Bc4 gives White lots of compensation for two pawns, but the position looks unclear.
CONCLUSION: Black can accept the Vienna Gambit, and the rarity of such lines may give a well-prepared player practical chances as there are pitfalls for both sides. But objectively 3...exf4!? is almost certainly inferior to the mainline 3...d5.
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