King's RepositoryのロゴKing's Repository

Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e5/2. Nf3/2...Nc6/3. Bb5/3...Nf6/4. O-O/4...Nxe4/5. d4

Rio gambit accepted
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h

Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN)
Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4
Parent: Rio gambit accepted

5. d4

[edit | edit source]

White is down a pawn, but is on the way to recovering it. They look to open the position and threaten Re1, to shoo the knight away, then Nxe5 comes loaded with a discovered check. While Black's king is still in the centre, White hopes to generate tactics around the e-file, e.g.

  • 5...exd4? is a mistake because it opens the e-file. 6. Re1 pins the knight. 6...f5 7. Nxd4 and f3 is on its way and the knight can't be saved.
  • 5...d6? to defend the pawn lets White bring another attacker. 6. Qe2 (or 6. Re1) Nf6 and Black's game can soon unravel due to e-file pressure, e.g. 6. Qe2 Nf6? 7. dxe5 dxe5?! 8. Nxe5 Be6 9. Rd1 Bd6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Bxc6+ Nd7 12. Bxa8 Qxa8+-, White is up the exchange.

So Black must figure with threats on the e-file.

5...Be7, the Rio de Janeiro variation, shelters the king and prepares to castle, after which an open centre is less dangerous. The game continues 6. Qe2 Nd6 7. Bxc6 bxc6! 8. dxe5 Nb7 9. Nc3 O-O. This was how this position was played in the 19th century.

More common today is to start with 5...Nd6, L'Hermet variation. Black moves their knight, preventing White from gaining time on it with Re1 or Qe2, while attacking the bishop. If 6. dxe5 this leads to a big trade and the famous Berlin draw, 6...Nxb5 7. a4 Nbd4 8. Nxd4 Nxd4 9. Qxd4 d5 10. exd6 Qxd6=. If 6. Bxc6 this leads to the famous Berlin Wall endgame, 6...dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8.

Alternatively, if Black could play ...d5, they could support their knight in the centre and perhaps keep the e-file closed for now. However, 5...d5? in this position pins Black's knight and allows 6. Nxe5!. Black must prepare it with 5...a6, the Rosenthal Variation, where 6. Ba4 transposes into an Open Spanish and Black gets to play ...d5: 6...b5 7. Bb3 d5.

Theory table

[edit | edit source]

For explanation of theory tables, see theory table and for notation, see algebraic notation..

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.O-O Nxe4 5.d4
5 6 7 8
...
Nd6
Bxc6
dxc6
dxe5
Nf5
+=
Rio de Janeiro Variation ...
Be7
Qe2
Nd6
Bxc6
dxc6
Nb7

...

+=
Transposes to
Ruy Lopez Open Defence
...
a6
Ba4 =

When contributing to this Wikibook, please follow the Conventions for organization.

References

[edit | edit source]

See also

[edit | edit source]


v · t · e
Chess Opening Theory
1. e4 e5
Open game
2. Nf3
With 2...Nc6:
  • Four knights ( )
  • Italian game ( )
  • Spanish game ( )

With other 2nd moves:

2. Other
1. e4 c5
Sicilian defence
1. e4 ...other: