Symmetrical Variation, Botvinnik System Reversed, with Nf3

Black answers 5. Nf3 with 5...e5 and adopts the Botvinnik structure with colors reversed. The pawns on c5 and e5 clamp d4 and restrict the knight on f3. The line is also called the Wedberg Variation, after Tom Wedberg, who popularized the plan of 5...e5 followed by ...Nge7 in the 1980s. White most often castles with 6. O-O, while 6. d3 and 6. a3, preparing b4, are the main alternatives. The engine rates the position as roughly balanced, and White scores somewhat better in practice.