Chess Openings Lab
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How to Beat the Italian Game

The Italian is a sound opening, so there is no refutation. You beat it by choosing a reliable setup, knowing where White's attacking ideas come from, and steering clear of the dubious gambits that the engine punishes.

Starts
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4
You play
Black
Black scores
48.0% in 206,003 lichess games
The Italian Game explained

The simplest system: 3...Bc5

The Giuoco Piano is the engine's top choice. After 3...Bc5 Black develops a piece, eyes f2 and keeps a flexible structure. Against 4.c3 continue with ...Nf6, ...d6 and ...a5, and against 4.d3 the same setup works. The engine line 3...Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 a5 6.O-O d6 7.h3 shows the plan: a safe bishop, a well-protected e5 pawn, and a position where neither side can force much.

Play ...h6 at the right moment to stop Ng5 and Bg5, castle, and look for ...d5 when White is slow.

If you want a fight

The move 3...Nf6 leads to the Two Knights Defense. It hits e4 at once and allows White to attack f7 with Ng5. If you know the main reply ...d5 and ...Na5, you get open, active play. If White chooses a slow d3 setup, you transpose to normal Italian positions.

Against the open 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 line, take with ...exd4 and check with ...Bb4+ after cxd4. Know the sharp positions after Nc3 before you allow them.

The Two Knights also takes away some of White's quiet options. Many White players who like 4.d3 are happy to play it, but those who hoped for the Evans Gambit or the open c3 and d4 lines must find something else.

Handling White's gambits

  • The Evans Gambit, 4.b4. Take with ...Bxb4 and retreat the bishop to e7 after c3, or decline with ...Bb6. Develop first; give the pawn back if you need to.
  • The Jerome Gambit, 4.Bxf7+. Take the bishop. After Kxf7 and Nxe5+, keep the extra piece, put the king somewhere safe and trade pieces. The engine gives Black a decisive edge.
  • The Rosentreter Gambit, 4.d4. The engine already likes Black. Capture and develop.
  • The Deutz Gambit, 4.O-O Nf6 5.d4. Again the engine prefers Black; take the pawn and finish development.

Traps to avoid

Do not play the Blackburne-Kostic Gambit, 3...Nd4, hoping White grabs e5. A calm reply leaves you clearly worse, as the engine shows. The same goes for 3...f5, which weakens your own king.

Watch f7 in every line. A knight on g5 plus the bishop on c4 can win a pawn or more if you castle carelessly or let the queen reach h5 or f3. Moves like ...h6 and ...Be6 cut those ideas.

Against the slow d3 setups

Most club players with White choose the quiet lines with c3 and d3. Here you can equalize without much risk if you know a few patterns. Put the bishop on c5 and give it a safe home with ...a5 and a retreat to a7. Play ...d6 and ...h6 to take g5 away from White's knight and bishop, then castle. The knight from c6 can later go to e7 and g6 to guard your king, and the move ...Be6 offers a trade of White's best bishop.

When White plays d4, decide whether to keep the tension or take. Taking on d4 opens the e-file and puts pressure on e4, so it works best when your rook is already on e8. Keeping the pawn on e5 is more solid but gives White space. Both are fine; the mistake is to wait without a plan while White builds up.

Plans once the opening is over

In the slow structures the middlegame is long. Keep your bishop on a7 or b6, play ...Be6 to challenge the c4 bishop, and reroute a knight to g6 for kingside defense. If White goes for d4, keep the e5 pawn as long as it is safe, or release with ...exd4 when your pieces are ready to hit e4.

A queenside push with ...a5 and ...a4 can gain space if White castled early and delayed a4. In endgames, the symmetrical structure tends to be balanced, so a better minor piece is often the deciding factor.

Lines we recommend for Black

The main lines you will meet

Questions

What is the best way to play against the Italian Game?

The Italian is a sound opening, so there is no refutation. You beat it by choosing a reliable setup, knowing where White's attacking ideas come from, and steering clear of the dubious gambits that the engine punishes.

What does the engine play against the Italian Game?

Stockfish 17.1 at depth 20 prefers 3...Bc5 and rates the position +0.18 (level).

Scores: Lichess rated games, September 2025 (blitz, rapid and classical). Engine: Stockfish 17.1. Updated October 2026. Method.