Variations
The main continuations on White's fourth move are:
- 4.c3 (the Greco Variation), see below.
- 4.d3 (the Giuoco Pianissimo, Italian: "Very Quiet Game"), see below.
- 4.b4 (the Evans Gambit), in which White offers a pawn to speed his development. This opening was popular in the 19th century, more than the standard Giuoco Piano.
- 4.d4 (the Italian Gambit), in which White opens up the center avoiding the quiet lines of the Giuoco Piano and Giuoco Pianissimo.
- 4.O-O, often with the intention of meeting 4...Nf6 with 5.d4, the Max Lange Gambit, with similar ideas to the Italian Gambit but with some transpositional differences.
- 4.Bxf7+? Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 (the Jerome Gambit), an extremely dubious opening where White sacrifices two pieces in the hope of exposing Black's king and obtaining a mating attack.
- 4.Nc3 (the Four Knights Variation).
Read more about this topic: Giuoco Piano
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