Giuoco Piano
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Nc3 Nxe4 8.0-0 Bxc3 9.bxc3!?
The main line in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database runs 9.d5 Bf6 10.Re1 Ne7 11.Rxe4 d6 12.Bg5!? Bxg5 13.Nxg5 h6 14.Qe2!? hxg5 15.Re1 Be6!? 16.dxe6 f6 17.Re3 c6, with at least a slight edge for Black, according to Stockfish17 and Dragon1, although there are quite a few interesting alternatives along the way that engine evaluations suggest are worth exploring.
Steinitz played the text with his first two whites against Lasker in their 1896 world championship match, losing both games.
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| How should Black respond? |
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9...d5
In Mega25 there are 47 games with the blunder 9...Nxc3??, although only 24 of them featured the piece-winning reply 10.Qe1+, and of those 24, White only managed to win 18.
10.Bd3
Steinitz played 10.Ba3?! in both his games against Lasker, as he had done against Schlechter at Hastings 1895. Schlechter's cautious reply 10...Be6?! allowed Steinitz to equalise, according to the engines, but Lasker's 10...dxc4 gave Black a large advantage.
10...0-0
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| Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position? |
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White has the bishop-pair, but that is not sufficient for a pawn unless there are other factor(s). The engines give Black a slight edge.
11.Bxe4!?
This was played by James Mason in 1904 in what seems to have been the first game to reach the position, but the text has been largely superseded by 11.Qc2.
11...dxe4 12.Nd2
Stockfish17 prefers Mason's 12.Ng5, but Dragon1 rates the two moves the same.
12...Re8 13.Re1 Bf5 14.Nc4 Qf6 15.Ne3 Rad8!?
The engines agree that getting on with development is slightly better than preserving the bishop by 15...Bg6.
16.Qb3 b6 17.Bb2!?
The bishop's position on b2 does not look promising, but it helps facilitate advancing the c pawn by latently covering the d pawn. Obvious alternatives are 17.Ba3, but the bishop is then largely hitting thin air, and 17.Nxf5 Qxf5 18.Be3, but then the knight may tun out to be the better remaining minor piece, especially if it manages to occupy c4.
17...Qg6 18.Qb5 Bd7 19.Qb3 Kh8
The engines much prefer 19...Na5 or 19...Be6!? After the latter, the forking 20.d5 is not much of a threat as Black has 20...Na5.
20.Kh1
The engines reckon this is a good time for 20.c4.
20...Ne7 21.d5 f5 22.c4?!
White should probably take time out to try to prevent 22...f4 by playing 22.g3!?, although 22...f4!? anyway is not bad, and there is no doubt 22.g3!? weakens the white king's position.
22...f4 23.Nc2 Nf5 24.Qc3 Nh4 25.Rg1 Bg4
I was tempted to play 25...Nf5?! in the hope White would reply 26.Rae1?, when 26...e3! wins as 27.fxe3 fails to 27...Ng3+! However, White has a major improvement in 26.g3!, and if 26...f3 the engines give 27.g4!?, claiming Black is only slightly better.
26.Ne1?
Better is 26.Nd4, but Black is well on top.
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| How should Black proceed? |
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26...f3?
This allows complete equality, whereas White is hard-pressed to answer other moves, including 26...Nf5. After 26...Nf5 White can try 27.h3, but a sample line runs 27...Qh5 28.Kh2 Rd6 29.f3 exf3 30.Nxf3 Re2 with an overwhelming Black attack.
27.gxf3 Nxf3 28.Qxg7+!
Not 28.Nxf3?? bxf3+ 29.Qxf3, hoping for 29...Qxg1+?? 30.Rxg1 exf3, and either 31.Rxg7 or 31.Bxg7+, as Black instead has 29...exf3 30.Rxg6 hxg6 with a simple win.
28...Qxg7 29.Bxg7+ Kxg7 30.Rxg4+ Kh8 31.Nxf3 exf3 32.Rf4 Rf8 33.Rxf8+ Rxf8
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| Material is level and it is a rook-and-pawn ending that the engines agree is completely equal, but there is still play in the position |
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34.Re1 Rf4 35.Re8+ Kg7 36.Re7+ Rf7 37.Re3
The pawn ending after 37.Rxf7+? Kxf7 is won for Black, eg 38.h4 Kf6 39.Kh2 Ke5 40.Kg3 Ke4 41.h5 a6 42.h6 (42.a4 Kd4 43.Kxf3 Kxc4 44.Ke4 b5 etc) b5 43.cxb5 axb5 44.Kg4 Kxd5 45.Kxf3 c5 46.Ke3 c4 47.a3 Ke5 48.Kd2 Kf5 49.Kc3 Kg6 50.a4 bxa4 51.Kxc4 Kxh6 etc.
37...Kg6 38.h3 h5 39.Kh2 Rf4 40.Re6+ Kg5 41.Rc6 Rf7 42.Re6 Kf4
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| White to play and maintain equality |
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43.Rh6?
The engines give 43.Kg1! as equal, but other moves may hold, eg 43.Kh1 Rg7 44.a4 Rg2 45.Rf6+ Ke4 46.Rf7 Rxf2 is only slightly better for Black, according to Stockfish17, although Dragon1 reckons Black is winning.
43...Rg7 44.Rxh5 Rg2+ 45.Kh1 Rxf2
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| Material is still equal, but Black's passed pawn is much more advanced and therefore much more dangerous than White's |
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46.Rh7 Kg3
Simply capturing the a pawn is much stronger, according to the engines, but the text, which threatens mate, also wins.
47.Rg7+ Kxh3 48.Rh7+ Kg3 49.Rg7+ Kf4 50.Rxc7 Rxa2 51.Rf7+ Ke3 52.Re7+ Kd4 53.Kg1 Kxc4 54.d6 Rd2 55.Rc7+ Kb5 56.d7 a5
The a pawn cannot be stopped.
57.Kf1 a4 58.Ke1 Rd3 59.Kf2 Kb4 60.Rc6 b5 61.Rc7 a3 62.Ra7 Kb3 63.Ra5 b4 0-1
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