Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, with h6

This position arises when White castles before committing to c3, via 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3, and Black answers with 6...h6. The pawn move takes g5 away from both the c1-bishop and the f3-knight. That rules out the pin on the f6-knight and any Ng5 jump against f7. It also keeps open the more ambitious plan of ...g5, which in the Pianissimo is usually paired with castling queenside, although Black can just as well castle short and treat ...h6 as a quiet prophylactic move. The pawn structure, with e4 and d3 facing e5 and d6, is the familiar Pianissimo one, and the play stays slow.

The most common reply is 7. h3, which mirrors Black's idea by covering g4. Other frequent choices are 7. Re1, 7. b4 and 7. Nbd2. Both 7. Re1 and 7. Nbd2 return to standard Giuoco Pianissimo territory. The flank thrust 7. b4 gains queenside space and gains time against the c5-bishop, but in online games it has produced White's weakest results of the four. The engine rates the position as roughly level and prefers Nbd2, b4 and Re1. White scores marginally better than Black, and draws are rare.