Italian Game: Evans Gambit Declined
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6
Evans Gambit Declined
1.2.3.4.
What Is The Evans Gambit Declined?
The retreat 4...Bb6 answers the Evans before it starts. By refusing the pawn, Black denies White the tempo-gaining c3 and d4 advance the entire gambit is built on, leaving b4 as a loose pawn rather than a battering ram. The bishop stays trained on f2 and Black castles into a normal Italian. White's critical reply is 5.a4: the threat of a5 winning the bishop forces 5...a6 and buys real queenside space.
Resist 5.b5. After 5...Na5 the knight hits the c4 bishop, and 6.Nxe5 invites 6...Qg5, forking the knight and g2 with violent play for Black. Games are decided by the queenside pawns: convert them into a c3 and d4 centre and they justify themselves, leave them standing and they turn into endgame targets.
What Do Players Choose At The Decision Point?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bxb4 | 74% | 480 | |
| Bb6 | 14% | 91 | |
| Nxb4 | 6% | 36 | |
| d6 | 1% | 8 |
How Does Play Continue From Here?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| c3 | 48% | 44 | |
| a4 | 21% | 19 | |
| O-O | 14% | 13 | |
| b5 | 11% | 10 |
The Named Lines Of The Evans Gambit Declined
| Line | Moves |
|---|---|
| Cordel Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.Bb2 |
| Showalter Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.a4 a6 6.Nc3 |
| Hirschbach Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Nxe5 Qg5 |
| Lange Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Nxe5 Nh6 |
| Vasquez Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Nxe5 Qg5 7.Bxf7+ Ke7 8.Qh5 |
| Hicken Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Nxe5 Qg5 7.Qf3 Qxe5 8.Qxf7+ Kd8 9.Bb2 |
| Pavlov Variation | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Nxe5 Nh6 7.d4 d6 8.Bxh6 dxe5 9.Bxg7 Rg8 10.Bxf7+ Kxf7 11.Bxe5 Qg5 12.Nd2 |