McCutcheon Variation, Janowski Variation

The Janowski Variation is the McCutcheon retreat 6. Be3. The bishop guards d4 rather than going to d2, so it no longer shields the pinned c3-knight. Black most often replies 6...Ne4, adding a second attacker against c3. The alternatives 6...Bxc3+ and 6...Nfd7 are less common, and in online games the immediate capture has scored poorly for Black. The line is seldom played, and engines judge the position roughly balanced.