Theoria
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Grünfeld Defense

Smyslov Defense

D94solidpositional

  1. 1.d4d5
  2. 2.c4c6
  3. 3.Nc3Nf6
  4. 4.e3g6
  5. 5.Nf3Bg7
  6. 6.Bd3O-O
  7. 7.O-OBg4
709 games49%45%

A quiet Grünfeld line reached from a Slav move order, in which Black pins the f3-knight with 7...Bg4 against White's solid e3 setup.

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About the Smyslov Defense

The Smyslov Defense is a Slav-Grünfeld hybrid, reached here through 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 g6. White keeps the c1-bishop behind a modest e3 pawn. With 7...Bg4, Black pins the f3-knight and adds indirect pressure on d4. The usual answer is 8. h3, which makes the bishop decide at once, and it scores well for White. The rarer 8. cxd5 and 8. Re1 have produced poor results for White. Engines give White a slight edge.

Popular continuations