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Italian Game

Evans Gambit, Leonhardt Countergambit

C52gambittacticaloffbeat

  1. 1.e4e5
  2. 2.Nf3Nc6
  3. 3.Bc4Bc5
  4. 4.b4Bxb4
  5. 5.c3Ba5
  6. 6.d4b5
50 games40%52%

A rare countergambit in the Evans Gambit where Black returns the extra pawn with 6...b5 to deflect White's c4-bishop and exploit the pin on c3.

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About the Leonhardt Countergambit

The Leonhardt Countergambit answers 6. d4 with 6...b5, giving back the extra pawn to lure the bishop away from c4. After 7. Bxb5, the usual reply, 7...Nxd4 exploits the a5-bishop's pin on the c3-pawn. The knight also attacks b5, so White cannot simply take on e5 as against an immediate 6...Nxd4. The line is seldom played, and the engine rates it roughly balanced. In the small sample of games, 7. Bd5 has scored better for White.

Popular continuations