Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
7,805 games: White 53.4% / Draw 5.1% / Black 41.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 3,2213,221 | ||
| 2,2222,222 | ||
| 939939 | ||
| 550550 | ||
| 453453 | ||
| 336336 | ||
| 4848 | ||
| 99 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.11 The position is about equal
Best play: 8... Ne6 9. Bxb5+ Bd7 10. Bc4 Nb6 11. Bb3 f5 12. Ng3 Qf6 13. O-O
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation (ECO C57, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Nd4 6. c3 b5 7. Bf1 Nxd5 8. Ne4 (8 moves).
In 7,805 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 53.4%, Black 41.4% and 5.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 8…Ne6, in 41% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation
8…Bf5 scores best for Black: 50.7%, with Black winning 49.2% and White 47.7% of 939 games. The most played, 8…Ne6, scores 46.5% in 3,221 games, and 8…f5 scores lowest: 32.5%. Stockfish's first choice is 8…Ne6.
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation (C57)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-two-knights-defense-fritz-gruber-variation