Lots of fun for Black!

by ChessBase
7/9/2025 – The Albin Counter Gambit is a provocative attempt to combat the Queen's Gambit: after 1.d4 d5 2.c4, Black sends the second centre pawn forward unprotected with 2...e5. After 3.dxe5, the idea behind the pawn sacrifice is to advance boldly with 3...d4, limiting White’s queen's knight and claiming space advantage in the centre. This is an ambitious move, but one that promises active play for Black. While analysing a highly topical variation, our author Luc Henris recently came across the astonishing piece sacrifice 10...Bc5 – which turned out to be ‘a completely new and incredible concept for Black’! He shares his discovery with you in the current ChessBase Magazine #226. Take a look at this week's free sample!
2025 European Championship with a German double victory and analyses by Bluebaum, Svane, Rodshtein, Yuffa, Navara and many more. Opening videos by Engel, King and Marin. Training sections “The Fortress”, “The Trap” and “Fundamental Endgame Knowledge" etc.
ChessBase Magazine offers first-class training material for club players and professionals! World-class players analyse their brilliant games and explain the ideas behind the moves. Opening specialists present the latest trends in opening theory and exciting ideas for your repertoire. Master trainers in tactics, strategy and endgames show you the tricks and techniques you need to be a successful tournament player! Available as a direct download (incl. booklet as pdf file) or booklet with download key by post.
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Lots of fun for Black!

Free sample from ChessBase Magazine #226

by Luc Henris

Click on one of the following images to load the sample as a ChessBase Book in your web browser (also on iPad, tablet Mac etc.)

“After 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.a3 Nge7 6.b4 Ng6 7.Bb2 a5! (an essential move, forcing b4-b5 before Black regains the pawn on e5, while weakening White's queenside and getting control of the important c5-square for the bishop on f8) 8.b5 Ncxe5 9.Nxe5 Nxe5 10.e3, we reach a very important position in one of the most topical lines of the Albin Countergambit:

Here, the usual continuation is 10...Be6 11.Bxd4 Nxc4 12.Qc2!? Nd6 13.Bd3 Qg5!? which leads to major and fascinating complications.

However, a few months ago I came across the game Fier,A - Da Silva Borges,R 1-0 in which after 10.e3 Black (instead of the theoretical 10...Be6) played the very surprising move 10...Bc5!?.

Of course, I wondered if the bishop move was just a horrible blunder which should lose the game rapidly after White wins a piece with 11.exd4. Then I realised that it introduces a completely new and incredible concept for Black! I also checked if 10...Bc5!? had been played before, and I discovered only a few internet games with that move. So I started my investigations, spending hours and hours analysing the positions arising after 10...Bc5!?, and discovered a lot of amazing variations - which I now want to share with you!”

From the above diagram, Luc Henris analyses the lines after : A) 11.exd4, B) 11.Bxd4 and C) 11.Be2 or 11.h3.

Henris: “10...Bc5!? leads to fantastic positions which I really enjoyed analysing. In basically all variations Black seems to be more or less fine, with lots of tactics working in their favour. It once again shows the amazing resources of the Albin Countergambit, and I hope this article inspires you to employ this opening in your own practice!”

Highlights of ChessBase Magazine #226

From the 2025 European Championship to Luis Engel's opening video on the Najdorf with 6.Bd3 and the new practical tip ‘Liquidation’ by Jan Markos and Oliver Reeh's tactical contribution ‘Queen sacrifice with dividend’ to Dr. Karsten Mueller's video series ‘Fundamental Endgame Knowledge’.

Over 7 hours of video playing time with Frederik Svane, Martin Breutigam, Daniel King, Luis Engel Jan Markos, Mihail Marin, Dr Karsten Mueller, Michael Prusikin, Oliver Reeh, Robert Ris and Dorian Rogozenco.

Order now in the ChessBase Shop  
ChessBase Magazine #226 for only € 21.90!

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Topics: Albin Counter Gambit. Luc Henris, ChessBase Magazine
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Video

60m The Two Knights

This entry into the 60 minutes series concentrates on the Modern variation of the Italian game where White opens the centre early : 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nf6 4 d4 exd4 5 e5!. This line can be reached by various move orders, most frequently from the Scotch 3 d4 exd4 4 Bc4. It's a sharp variation and Grandmasters such as Evgeny Sveshnikov have used it frequently,with very good results. It's a perfect line for club players to adopt which is relatively easy to learn and which contains many traps. All the main responses are covered here, including 5...d5, 5...Ng4 and 5...Ne4 and the conclusion is that is is difficult for Black to equalize in a straightforward way. Problems are being posed, which over the board might prove tough to solve.