Busch-Gass Gambit, Chiodini Gambit

The Chiodini Gambit is Black's alternative to the usual 3...Qh4 in the Busch-Gass Gambit. Rather than attack f2 and e4 with the queen, Black develops the queen's knight and offers it in exchange for the centralized white knight. Taking leaves Black a pawn down but with the c8-bishop and queen freed, so Black must play energetically to justify the material. The engine considers White clearly better.

The usual reply, 4. Nxc6, appears in about two thirds of games. After 4...dxc6 Black recaptures toward the center, opening the d-file and the c8-h3 diagonal, and the game takes on the character of the Stafford Gambit, with Black playing for quick piece activity and traps. In practice Black scores slightly better than White in this line. Declining the exchange with 4. Nf3 keeps the position distinct: the knight retreats to a safe square from which it supports a later d4 to claim central space, and White scores noticeably better after it. The engine also suggests 4. Nd3, which hits the c5-bishop. The greedier 4. Nxf7 is an occasional try.