Open · a plan for White
Italian Game: Evans Gambit, McDonnell Defense
10/10
1.e4e52.Nf3Nc63.Bc4Bc54.b4Bxb45.c3Bc5
Live databaseLichess 1600–2000 · blitz + rapid
Italian Game: Evans Gambit, McDonnell Defense1.0M games · White to move
MoveWhite / draw / BlackPlayedGamesScore
87%878k59%
9%90k58%
3.4%34k54%
0.1%1.2k45%
0.1%63143%
0.1%61131%
0.1%59738%
0.1%59647%
0%35648%
0%10641%
Famous games in this line38 master games
Antal, Ge (2563) – Diermair, A. (2475)Baghdasaryan, V. (2376) – Santos Latasa, J. (2584)Rabiega, Robert (2517) – Haznedaroglu, Kivanc (2358)Nogueiras Santiago, Jesus (2435) – Campora, Daniel Hugo (2400)Warakomski, Tomasz (2499) – Bonte, Andrei Mihai (2307)Makaj, Marko (2317) – Rogic, Davor (2477)Bajarani, U. (2474) – Ismayilov, Ganjali (2308)Kislinsky, A.. (2404) – Biriukov, N.. (2364)Heroes of this opening Antal, Ge · Santos Latasa, J. · Rabiega, Robert · Nogueiras Santiago, Jesus
- Family
- Italian Game
- Category
- Open
- First move
- 1.e4
- ECO
- C51
- Line
- 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Bc5
GambitClassical
★ Read the guide: Italian GameExplore all 184 Italian Game lines →Keep exploring
Go deeper — named lines from here
Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Harding Variation6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bb4 8.Bd2Italian Game: Evans Gambit, McDonnell Defense, Main Line6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 · 7 deeper linesItalian Game: Evans Gambit, Fraser Attack6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 … · 2 deeper linesItalian Game: Evans Gambit, Göring Attack6.d4 exd4 7.O-O d6 8.cxd4 Bb6 … · 1 deeper line
Nearby lines in the family
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