Why the Evans Gambit is worth training
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4.The Evans Gambit grows out of the Italian Game. After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5, White plays 4.b4 and offers a pawn to pull the bishop away from c5. If Black takes with 4...Bxb4, White hits the bishop again with 5.c3 and prepares d4, building a big center while Black spends time with the bishop.
Chessmate has an Evans Gambit course for White and an Evans Gambit course for Black. The White course has twelve lines and the Black course has nine, so each side gets its own repertoire.
The Ba5 main line for White
14.Nxe5, White has won back the pawn and the black king is still in the center.In the White sample line, Black retreats with 5...Ba5 and White takes the center with 6.d4. After 6...d6 7.Qb3, the queen hits f7 and b7 at once, so Black defends with 7...Qd7. White castles with 8.O-O, Black tucks the bishop back with 8...Bb6, and White develops with 9.Nbd2 instead of rushing to win the pawn back.
Black jumps in with 9...Na5, attacking the queen and the bishop. After 10.Qc2 Nxc4 11.Nxc4 Qc6 12.Nxb6 axb6, Black has doubled b-pawns. White then opens the center with 13.dxe5 dxe5 14.Nxe5, wins back the gambit pawn with a hit on the queen, and keeps the lead in development.
Black's 5...Be7 and ...Na5 defense
15...Nh5, Black has castled, kept material level, and is heading for f4.The Black course meets 5.c3 with the modern retreat 5...Be7. After 6.d4 Na5, the knight attacks the bishop on c4, and White keeps it with 7.Be2. Black supports the center with 7...d6, and after 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.Qa4+ c6 10.Nxe5, White has won back the pawn.
Black puts king safety first. After 10...Nf6 11.O-O Qc7 12.Nf3 O-O, Black has caught up in development and material is level. Then 13.Bg5 b5 14.Qc2 h6 15.Bh4 Nh5 gains queenside space and sends the knight toward f4. The course also covers 7.Bxf7+?, which fails after 7...Kxf7 8.Nxe5+ Ke8, and the early 6.Nxe5?, which Black meets with 6...Nxe5.
The 6...exd4 open center
12.Re1, White is two pawns down but has lined up the queen and rook against the knight on e4.The White course also covers 6...exd4. White does not recapture. Instead White castles with 7.O-O, and after 7...Nf6 8.Ba3 the bishop makes it hard for Black to castle. After 8...d6 9.e5 Ne4 10.exd6 cxd6, White develops with tempo through 11.Qe2 Qe7 12.Re1.
This is the spirit of the Evans Gambit. White plays for open files and active pieces, not for the pawns. The course also covers Black's other retreats, 5...Bc5, 5...Bd6, and 5...Bf8, and the mistake 5...Nf6?, which loses the bishop to 6.cxb4.
When Black declines with 4...Bb6
10.Nbd2, White has extra queenside space in a calm Italian-style position.Black does not have to take the pawn. After 4...Bb6, White gains space with 5.a4, threatening a5 to push the bishop around, and Black answers 5...a6. After 6.O-O d6 7.c3 Nf6 8.d3 O-O 9.Re1 h6 10.Nbd2, the game looks like a quiet Italian Game where White has gained queenside space for free.
The course also covers 4...Be7, where White answers 5.d4 and plays in the center right away.
What to train first
Pick the course for the color you play.
- If you play the Evans Gambit as White, start with the Evans Gambit course for White. Learn the
5...Ba5sample line first, then the6...exd4open center and the4...Bb6decline. - If you face the Evans Gambit as Black, start with the Evans Gambit course for Black. Learn the
5...Be7and...Na5main line first, then the queen trade after9.Qxd8+. - Whichever side you play, watch the f7-square and the black king. The Evans Gambit is a race between White's development and Black's extra pawn.
The Evans Gambit rewards fast development and clear plans. Train the lines until you know when the pawn matters and when the initiative matters more.