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6...d6 is then Black's most critical response to 6.Bc4. Black wants to play ...Nf6 and ...0-0, but doesn't want to let White kick the knight on f6 by playing e4-e5. This pawn move controls the e5-square, and also allows Black to develop the bishop on c8, usually to e6 (where it offers an exchange of light squared bishops) or g4 (where it pins the knight on f3 to the queen).
Until recently this line has often been regarded as good for Black, as White's two most popular tries fall short: a) 7.0-0 is well met by 7...Bxc3! 8.bxc3 Nf6! threatening to castle kingside. Then if 9.Ba3 White hasn't found a good answer to 9...Bg4!, as played in Penrose-Smyslov, Munich 1958. Also after 9.Bg5 0-0 it is not clear if the pin on the f6-knight and the slight lead in development gives White enough compensation. So White has often sacrificed a second pawn with 9.e5!?, but White is probably short of full compensation following 9...Nxe5 10.Nxe5 dxe5 11.Qb3 (11.Qxd8+ Kxd8 12.Bxf7 Ke7 13.Bb3 Be6 regains one pawn but "leads to a dreary ending for White" as pointed out by Mark Morss) 11...Qe7 12.Ba3 c5 (diagram). After 7.0-0 Black also has an interesting alternative in 7...Bg4!?, letting f7 drop off in return for counterplay against the white king, viz. 8.Qb3 Bxf3+ 9.Bxf7+ Kf8 10.gxf3 Ne5, which also scores well for Black, but objectively White isn't doing too badly. A good illustrative example of this line is Fries Nielsen-Brinck Claussen, Norresundby 1978. |
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The other popular line for White is 7.Qb3, but then Black should play 7...Bxc3+! (7...Qe7?! 8.0-0 Bxc3 9.Qxc3! gives White good compensation, as first pointed out by John Emms in Play the Open Games as Black).
After 7...Bxc3+!, 8.Qxc3 is well met by 8...Qf6! offering to trade queens, and White can't block this with 9.e5 as Black can safely take on e5, as White hasn't castled and so isn't ready to bring a rook to the e-file. So White's best is probably 8.bxc3, and then 8...Qe7 9.0-0 Nf6 threatens to safely castle kingside. Then the second pawn sacrifice 10.e5 Nxe5 11.Nxe5 dxe5 12.Ba3 c5 transposes to the 7.0-0 line ending in 12...c5, so White's best is probably to try 10.Bg5 (diagram) as tried in Minev-Matanovic, Moscow 1956. It is not clear, though, if White's kingside pressure and pin on the knight on f6 is worth a pawn, particularly as after castling Black will threaten ...Na5, forcing the exchange of the important Bc4 for the Nc6, and certainly Black isn't in much danger of being mated on the kingside. Black can also meet 8.bxc3 with 8...Qd7, threatening ...Na5 immediately, and if 9.Ng5 Black can again threaten ...Na5 with 9...Nh6, but after 10.Qc2 followed by f4, White has more chances to generate complications in this line, as in Blees-Bosch, Groningen 1997. |