ecocodes
Volume C · Open games and the French Defense‹ C56C58 ›
a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8
Reference position · Black to move

C57 Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knight Attack

C57 holds 17 named lines, all under the name Italian Game. It leaves C55 (Italian Game: Two Knights Defense) with 4.Ng5. Material is no longer level at the end of 11 of its lines; the widest gap, two pawns in Black’s favour, comes in Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fegatello Attack, Leonhardt Variation. Black, to move in that position, has 28 legal moves, the fewest of the 10 Italian Game codes. Its deepest line, Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fegatello Attack, Leonhardt Variation, runs to 11...Nc7, the fifth-longest of the 10 Italian Game codes.

Score sheet
#WhiteBlack
1e4e5
2Nf3Nc6
3Bc4Nf6
4Ng5

The move that completes C57

The reference line of C58 plays all of these moves and continues beyond them; C57 is the position reached at 4.Ng5.

  1. 4.Ng5 The knight goes from f3 to g5, opening a line for the queen on d1, guarding the pawn on e4.

Lines filed under C57

All 17 share their first seven plies, the whole reference line and then split three ways at Black’s move 4.

NameAfter the shared startPliesAt the end
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knight Attack(the shared start itself)7
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knight Attack, Normal Variation4...d58
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ponziani-Steinitz Gambit4...Nxe48Black +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack4...Bc58
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line4...Bc5 5.Bxf7+9White +1, check
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Knight Sacrifice Line4...Bc5 5.Nxf79White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz Variation4...d5 5.exd5 Nd410White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Kloss Gambit4...d5 5.exd5 Nb410White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation4...d5 5.exd5 b510White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fried Liver Attack4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Nxf711White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Lolli Attack4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.d411
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit4...Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Ke7 6.d411White +1
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Pincus Variation4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.d4 Bb4+12check
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, King March Line4...Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ 7.Ke313White +2
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation, Kurkin Gambit4...d5 5.exd5 b5 6.Bf1 h6 7.Nxf713White +2
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation4...d5 5.exd5 Nd4 6.c3 b5 7.Bf1 Nxd5 8.Ne415
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fegatello Attack, Leonhardt Variation4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Nxf7 Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3 Nb4 9.Qe4 c6 10.a3 Na6 11.d4 Nc722Black +2

The road to C57

  1. 1.e4 … 2...Nc6four earlier stops: B00, C20, C40, C44
  2. 3.Bc4C50 Italian Game
  3. 3...Nf6C55 Two Knights Defense
  4. 4.Ng5C57

The position after 4.Ng5

White has brought out the knight on g5 and bishop on c4; Black the knight on c6 and knight on f6. Black could capture with Nxe4.

WhiteBlackMaterial (pawn units)3939Minor pieces developed22Moves spent on pawns11Pawns on d4, e4, d5, e511Squares attacked in the other half86not castlednot castled

Codes that branch off from C57

The reference lines of one other code leave C57 from the position after 4...d5, each with its own moves.

CodeMovesReference line
C585.exd5 Na5Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Polerio Defense

Closest boards in other codes

CodeLineDiffers on
C24Bishop’s Opening: Berlin Defensefour squares: g1, g5, c6, b8
C28Vienna Game: Stanley Variation, Three Knights Variationfour squares: b1, g1, c3, g5
C50Italian Gamefour squares: f3, g5, f6, g8
C56Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Open Variationfour squares: d2, f3, d4, g5
C65Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defensefour squares: f3, c4, b5, g5
C23Bishop’s Openingsix squares: g1, g5, c6, f6, b8, g8
C42Petrov’s Defensesix squares: f1, f3, c4, g5, c6, b8

Where lines continue from here

Fourteen named lines filed under other codes pass through the position after 4.Ng5. Besides the codes above, they belong to C59.

Volume C

  1. 00
  2. 01
  3. 02
  4. 03
  5. 04
  6. 05
  7. 06
  8. 07
  9. 08
  10. 09
  11. 10
  12. 11
  13. 12
  14. 13
  15. 14
  16. 15
  17. 16
  18. 17
  19. 18
  20. 19
  21. 20
  22. 21
  23. 22
  24. 23
  25. 24
  26. 25
  27. 26
  28. 27
  29. 28
  30. 29
  31. 30
  32. 31
  33. 32
  34. 33
  35. 34
  36. 35
  37. 36
  38. 37
  39. 38
  40. 39
  41. 40
  42. 41
  43. 42
  44. 43
  45. 44
  46. 45
  47. 46
  48. 47
  49. 48
  50. 49
  51. 50
  52. 51
  53. 52
  54. 53
  55. 54
  56. 55
  57. 56
  58. 57
  59. 58
  60. 59
  61. 60
  62. 61
  63. 62
  64. 63
  65. 64
  66. 65
  67. 66
  68. 67
  69. 68
  70. 69
  71. 70
  72. 71
  73. 72
  74. 73
  75. 74
  76. 75
  77. 76
  78. 77
  79. 78
  80. 79
  81. 80
  82. 81
  83. 82
  84. 83
  85. 84
  86. 85
  87. 86
  88. 87
  89. 88
  90. 89
  91. 90
  92. 91
  93. 92
  94. 93
  95. 94
  96. 95
  97. 96
  98. 97
  99. 98
  100. 99

Open this line in the finderAll Italian Game codes