B04

Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Larsen-Haakert Variation

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Statistics from Lichess

247,783 games: White 48.1% / Draw 4.9% / Black 47.0%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next move	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
	87,90988K
	48,67949K
	39,21639K
	31,70632K
	15,27515K
	9,2639,263
	3,8873,887
	3,3333,333

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.80 White is better

Best play: 5. c4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg4 7. exd6 exd6 8. Be3 g6 9. h3 Bxf3

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

By rating

Rating changes little here: Black scores 46% under 1400, 45% at 2200 and up and 44% in master games (wins plus half the draws).

Players	Games	White / Draw / BlackW / D / B
Under 1400	63K
1400–1799	133K
1800–2199	145K
2200 and up	26K
Masters, over the board	401

Master games

Ponomariov, R. – Ivanchuk, V. ½–½, 2002
Hou Yifan – Nakamura, H. ½–½, 2018
Grigoriants, S. R. – Nakamura, H. 0–1, 2017
Grigoriants, S. R. – Nakamura, H. 0–1, 2017
Adams, M. – Nakamura, H. ½–½, 2004

Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026

Overview

Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Larsen-Haakert Variation (ECO B04, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, reached after 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 Nc6 (4 moves).

In 247,783 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 48.1%, Black 47.0% and 4.9% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. c4, in 35% of those games.

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Description

How to play against the Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Larsen-Haakert Variation

5. Bb5 scores best for White: 52.8%, with White winning 50.5% and Black 45.0% of 32K games. The most played, 5. c4, scores 50.7% in 88K games, and 5. Bc4 scores lowest: 48.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 5. c4.

Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings

Popularity by year

The Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Larsen-Haakert Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.0078% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.015%.

0.015%0.0078%

Numbers by year

Year	Share of games	Games
2016	0.015%	5,506
2017	0.015%	8,363
2018	0.014%	11,142
2019	0.012%	15,372
2020	0.011%	32,258
2021	0.0098%	38,217
2022	0.0093%	34,847
2023	0.0086%	32,469
2024	0.0083%	29,774
2025	0.0078%	27,029
2026 (Jan–Apr)	0.0077%	8,444

Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation, Larsen-Haakert Variation (B04)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/alekhine-defense-modern-variation-larsen-haakert-variation