Caissa Codex
C54

Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, Main Line

Chess diagram: Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, Main Line after 9. h3

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

6,032 games: White 47.1% / Draw 6.6% / Black 46.3%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
2,1772,177
1,4381,438
1,2851,285
350350
204204
132132
131131
128128

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.16 The position is about equal

Best play: 9... h6 10. Nbd2 Be6 11. Bc2 Re8 12. Nf1 d5 13. exd5 Bxd5 14. Ng3

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, Main Line (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. c3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 a6 8. Bb3 Ba7 9. h3 (9 moves).

In 6,032 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.1%, Black 46.3% and 6.6% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…h6, in 36% of those games.

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How to play against the Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, Main Line

9…Ne7 scores best for Black: 51.9%, with Black winning 49.0% and White 45.1% of 1,438 games. The most played, 9…h6, scores 50.1% in 2,177 games, and 9…Re8 scores lowest: 46.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 9…h6.

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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 a6 8. Bb3 Ba7 9. h3, the position after Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Classical Variation, Giuoco Pianissimo, Main Line (C54)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-giuoco-pianissimo-main-line

https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-classical-variation-giuoco-pianissimo-main-line