Morphy Defense, Steinitz Deferred

The Steinitz Deferred, also called the Russian Defense, waits until White has castled before supporting e5 with 5...d6. The pawn removes any threat of Nxe5 and releases the c6-knight from guard duty. It also shuts in the f8-bishop, which then goes to e7, transposing to the Averbakh Variation of the Closed Defense, or more often to g6. Black can break the pin with ...Bd7 or counter it with ...Bg4. Compared with the Modern Steinitz, 4...d6, this order sidesteps lines where White castles queenside, but the knight on f6 rules out supporting the center with ...f6. As in the Modern Steinitz, ...b5 is available to break the pin. That makes the direct 6. d4 risky: 6...b5 7. Bb3 Nxd4 8. Nxd4 exd4 9. Qxd4? c5 10. Qc3 c4 springs the Noah's Ark Trap.

6. Re1 is the usual reply, with 6. c3 and 6. d4 next. Engines give White a slight edge. Chigorin played the line in the 1890s, followed by Rubinstein and Alekhine. Its last serious use came from Russian masters in the 1950s. White now gains an edge by opening the center quickly, where Black's slower development tells, so the defense is mainly a practical choice.