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French Defense

Tarrasch Variation, Chistyakov Defense, Modern Line

C07positionalsolid

  1. 1.e4e6
  2. 2.d4d5
  3. 3.Nd2c5
  4. 4.exd5Qxd5
  5. 5.Ngf3cxd4
  6. 6.Bc4Qd6
  7. 7.O-ONf6
  8. 8.Nb3Nc6
  9. 9.Nbxd4Nxd4
  10. 10.Nxd4a6
200 games49%44%

A main line of the Chistyakov Defense in the Tarrasch French, where 10...a6 rounds off an exchange of knights on d4 and leads to a roughly balanced game.

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About the Modern Line

The Modern Line is the branch of the Chistyakov Defense in which Black, after exchanging knights on d4, plays 10...a6. The move covers b5, so White's knight cannot jump there to harass the queen on d6. White's main replies are 11. Re1, using the half-open e-file, and 11. c3, which supports the centralized knight and has scored best in practice. 11. a4 is rarer. The engine judges the position as roughly balanced.

Popular continuations