Opening Traps in the Two Knights Defense

Every time I wonder if chess will disappear or become less and less popular in the future, I remember that we’re playing some openings that have been studied for 500 years and we still haven’t solved them yet!

One of the oldest openings is the Italian Game, that we get after the moves 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. One common way for Black to continue is 3…Nf6, leading the game to the Two Knights Defense. What can be more natural than developing a knight in the opening?

Starting position of the Two Knights Defense

While this move is playable, Black has to be ready to face the very challenging move 4.Ng5, attacking Black’s f7-pawn.

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 Surprisingly, Black is playing natural moves, and White is moving a piece twice in the opening (very often, not a good idea in the opening) but it is hard to defend the f7-pawn.

But this position is so complex that even nowadays, with engines that can analyze millions of moves per second, there’s no clear verdict about it.

In fact, this is a great example of how alive chess still is. This popular line can offer a lot of exciting options for both sides to outplay each other.

That’s why today I want to analyze some of the most common and exciting traps that can be played for White and Black in this line in the Two Knights Defense.

If you don’t want to just memorize tricks, don’t worry. I’ll also cover the best moves and important ideas for both sides to learn this challenging line.

Learn the traps here: https://youtu.be/d3TQG5o4TUY