Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo 7. a4 O-O
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
69,048 games: White 50.1% / Draw 5.2% / Black 44.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 16,12216K | ||
| 14,78515K | ||
| 11,03011K | ||
| 7,7767,776 | ||
| 6,5446,544 | ||
| 4,5294,529 | ||
| 3,2083,208 | ||
| 1,7631,763 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.20 The position is about equal
Best play: 8. Re1 h6 9. Nbd2 a5 10. h3 Be6 11. b3 Re8 12. Bb5 Bd7
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo (ECO C54, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 7. a4 O-O (7 moves).
In 69,048 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 50.1%, Black 44.7% and 5.2% were drawn. White's most played move here is 8. b4, in 23% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to answer 7…O-O
8. Be3 scores best for White: 54.8%, with White winning 51.9% and Black 42.3% of 4,529 games. The most played answer, 8. b4, scores lowest: 49.5% in 16K games. Stockfish's first choice is 8. Re1.
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo (C54)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-giuoco-pianissimo-14