The Italian Game: a practical guide

The Italian Game starts with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. White develops a knight that attacks e5, then puts the bishop on its most aggressive diagonal, aiming at f7, the square next to Black’s king that only the king defends. It is one of the oldest and most practical openings in chess: the ideas are easy to grasp, and the positions range from quiet manoeuvring to sharp attacking play.

Black has two main replies. 3…Bc5 mirrors White’s set-up and leads to the Giuoco Piano. 3…Nf6 counter-attacks e4 and leads to the Two Knights Defence. The third branch, the Evans Gambit, is White’s choice: after 3…Bc5 White can throw in 4.b4.

The Giuoco Piano: 3…Bc5

Both bishops now point at the opponent’s f-pawn, and the fight is about the centre. White has two quite different ways to handle it.

The classical plan: c3 and d4

The old idea is to build a big centre straight away. 4.c3 prepares 5.d4, which gains time by hitting the bishop on c5. A typical line runs 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 Bxd2+ 8.Nbxd2 d5! 9.exd5 Nxd5. The move 8…d5 is the key for Black: without it White keeps a broad pawn centre and an easy game. After 9…Nxd5 White has an isolated d-pawn and active pieces, Black has a fine knight on d5, and the position is balanced.

Instead of 7.Bd2, White can play 7.Nc3 and give up the e4-pawn for rapid development. That leads to very sharp, heavily analysed lines, best saved for after you know the basic structure.

The modern plan: c3 and d3

Most strong players today prefer a slower set-up with d3 instead of an early d4. A typical sequence is 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.O-O a6 7.a4 Ba7 8.Re1 O-O 9.h3. Nothing is exchanged early; both sides improve their pieces and wait for the right moment to open the position. The recurring ideas are worth knowing in advance:

• White often reroutes the queen’s knight via d2 and f1 to g3, where it supports play on the kingside.
• h3 rules out …Bg4 and …Ng4, which would otherwise pin or harass the f3-knight.
• a4 gains space, discourages …b5 and, once the pawn has left a2, gives the bishop a safe retreat there.
• Black drops the bishop back to a7 in advance, so that a later d4 or b4 does not come with tempo, and keeps …d5 in reserve as the main central break.

The Giuoco Piano course covers both plans in more detail.

The Two Knights Defence: 3…Nf6

With 3…Nf6 Black ignores f7 for a moment and attacks e4 instead. White’s quiet answer is 4.d3, which leads to positions much like the slow Giuoco Piano, while 4.d4 opens the centre at once. The most direct try is 4.Ng5, attacking f7 a second time.

Black has to block the bishop with 4…d5, and after 5.exd5 comes the most important decision in the whole opening.

The Fried Liver danger

Recapturing with 5…Nxd5? looks natural but walks into trouble. White can sacrifice a knight with 6.Nxf7! Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3. The black king is stuck on e6, the knight on d5 is pinned against it by the c4-bishop, and White keeps adding attackers. This is the Fried Liver Attack. Black can survive with exact defence, but over the board, with the clock running, it is a very hard position to hold. White also has the calmer 6.d4, which is a strong alternative.

The main line: 5…Na5

The reliable answer is 5…Na5, hitting the bishop. After 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Be2 h6 9.Nf3 e4 10.Ne5, Black is a pawn down but has a lead in development and plenty of space, while White’s knight has used a lot of moves. Every Two Knights player needs to know this line, and White players should understand why the extra pawn comes at a cost.

Black also has the counter-attacking 4…Bc5, the Traxler, which ignores the threat on f7 altogether. It is sharp for both sides, so if you play 4.Ng5, prepare for it. More detail is in the Two Knights Defence course.

The Evans Gambit: 4.b4

After 3…Bc5 White can offer a pawn with 4.b4. The point is time: after 4…Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 White builds the centre that the classical c3–d4 plan aimed for, but with extra tempi gained on the bishop. Typical follow-ups are quick castling, Qb3 to pile up against f7, and sometimes Ba3, which can keep the black king in the centre.

Black does not have to accept. 4…Bb6 declines the pawn and keeps a normal position. Accepting is fine too, as long as Black is willing to give the pawn back when needed: 5…Be7 is a solid way to do that, and 6…d6 after 5…Ba5 6.d4 keeps a firm hold on e5. The worst approach is to grab material and then fall behind in development. The Against the Evans Gambit course shows Black’s options move by move.

How to study it

Start with the ideas: f7 as a target, c3 and d4 as the central plan, and the difference between the quick d4 and the slow d3. Then learn the one critical line for your side of the Two Knights: 5…Na5 if you play Black, and how to meet it if you play White. Leave the deep gambit lines for later.

You can play the Italian Game against Stockfish on TheoryChess, with an explanation for each theory move, and let spaced-repetition reviews bring the lines back before you forget them. When you think they have stuck, try the Italian Game quiz, or browse the openings catalogue for related lines such as the Ruy Lopez and the Scotch Game.