Open · a plan for White

Italian Game: Evans Gambit Declined, Hicken Variation

17/17
1.e4e52.Nf3Nc63.Bc4Bc54.b4Bb65.b5Na56.Nxe5Qg57.Qf3Qxe58.Qxf7+Kd89.Bb2
Live databaseLichess 1600–2000 · blitz + rapid
Italian Game: Evans Gambit Declined, Hicken Variation9 games · Black to move
Only 9 games reach this position at this level — read it loosely.
MoveWhite / draw / BlackPlayedGamesScore
78%743%
22%20%
Family
Italian Game
Category
Open
First move
1.e4
ECO
C51
Line
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bb6 5. b5 Na5 6. Nxe5 Qg5 7. Qf3 Qxe5 8. Qxf7+ Kd8 9. Bb2
GambitClassical
★ Read the guide: Italian GameExplore all 184 Italian Game lines →
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Nearby lines in the family
Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Morphy Attack4…Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 exd4 7.O-O …Italian Game: Giuoco Piano, Rosentreter Variation3…Nf6 4.O-O Bc5 5.d4 Bxd4 6.Nxd4 …Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Paoli Variation3…Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5 …
From the archives

The Italian Game appears in the Göttingen manuscript (c. 1500) and in Polerio's notebooks — chess players have been putting the bishop on c4 for more than five hundred years. It fell out of top-level fashion for decades, then came back as White players went looking for a way round the Berlin Defence; Carlsen used the quiet Giuoco Pianissimo in the 2016 world-championship match.

Study this opening
Videos on YouTube ↗Wikipedia: Italian Game ↗