Theoria
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Ruy Lopez

Open, Bernstein Variation

C80positionaltactical

  1. 1.e4e5
  2. 2.Nf3Nc6
  3. 3.Bb5a6
  4. 4.Ba4Nf6
  5. 5.O-ONxe4
  6. 6.d4b5
  7. 7.Bb3d5
  8. 8.dxe5Be6
  9. 9.Nbd2
458 games41%31%28%

Ruy Lopez: Open line in which White plays 9. Nbd2, hitting the e4-knight and allowing a bishop-for-knight trade without doubled pawns.

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About the Bernstein Variation

The Bernstein Variation, 9. Nbd2, attacks the e4-knight and is the main alternative to 9. c3. White permits 9...Nc5 10. c3 Nxb3 11. Nxb3, avoiding doubled pawns, but the d2-knight blocks the c1-bishop. Black usually answers 9...Nc5, then 10...Be7 or 10...d4. In the latter line Karpov introduced the knight sacrifice 11. Ng5 against Korchnoi in 1978. Ossip Bernstein played the variation against Tarrasch in 1914.

Popular continuations

Named variations 1