Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e5/2. Nf3/2...d6/3. d4/3...f5

Philidor Counter-Gambit
a b c d e f g h 8 8 7 7 6 6 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1 a b c d e f g h
Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN) rnbqkbnr/ppp3pp/3p4/4pp2/3PP3/5N2/PPP2PPP/RNBQKB1R w
Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 f5

Philidor Counter-Gambit

The situation is getting complicated. Black deliberately weakened his king-side to keep chances at the center.

4. dxe5 isn't the best solution. After 4...fxe4, the knight is forced to move to d4 or d2, blocking queen's attack against the Black pawn. Then, Black can rebuild his center with d5. A few games have been tried with 5. Ng5 where Black development is made harder by the White pawn.

4. exf5 may lead to weird pawn structures in both camps. If 4...exd4 5. Nxd4 White has only an advanced pawn on f file left, while Black has still his d6 pawn (but with a weakened king side).

4. Bc4 poses the Ng5 threat and Black should remain vigilant for any attempt to launch a Qh5+ attack.

4. Nc3 defends the attacked pawn and prepares a deadly trap. If 4...fxe4 5. Nxe4 d5 6. Nxe5 dxe4 7. Qh5+ g6 8. Nxg6 and the situation is bad for Black.

Theory table

For explanation of theory tables, see theory table and for notation, see algebraic notation..

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5

	4
	exf5 -	=
	dxe5 -	=
	Nc3 -	=
	Bc4 -	=