King's English Variation, Smyslov Defense

The Smyslov Defense arises after 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 d6 3. Nf3 Bg4. Black develops the light-squared bishop outside the pawn chain before playing ...Nf6 and puts pressure on the f3-knight, which supports a later d4. It is a rarely seen sideline. The engine gives White a slight edge and prefers 4. d4. In practice 4. e3 is the most common reply, followed by 4. g3 and 4. e4, and White scores well.