Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line
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Statistics from Lichess
535,371 games: White 51.7% / Draw 3.2% / Black 45.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 328,563329K | ||
| 206,808207K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 28, 2026
Engine evaluation
+1.19 White is better
Best play: 5... Ke7 6. Bc4 Rf8 7. Nc3 h6 8. Nf3 d6 9. O-O a6 10. Nd5+
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for White: White scores 58% under 1400, 51% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 174K | |
| 1400–1799 | 395K | |
| 1800–2199 | 292K | |
| 2200 and up | 32K | |
| Masters, over the board | 88 |
Master games
- Karpov, A. – Beliavsky, A. G.
- Anand, V. – Beliavsky, A. G.
- Gharamian, T. – Goldsztejn, G.
- Asrian, K. – Minasian, A.
- Efimov, I. – Shirov, A.
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
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line (ECO C57, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 Bc5 5. Bxf7+ (5 moves).
In 535,371 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.7%, Black 45.1% and 3.2% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 5…Ke7, in 61% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit.
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, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line
The most played answer, 5…Ke7, also scores best for Black: 50.6%, with Black winning 48.9% and White 47.7% of 329K games. Of the main answers, 5…Kf8 scores lowest: 40.5%. Stockfish's first choice is also 5…Ke7.
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
Popularity by year
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line peaked in 2021 at 0.025% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.018% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.02% | 7,088 |
| 2017 | 0.02% | 11,064 |
| 2018 | 0.02% | 15,694 |
| 2019 | 0.02% | 24,985 |
| 2020 | 0.019% | 57,022 |
| 2021 | 0.025% | 99,497 |
| 2022 | 0.022% | 84,465 |
| 2023 | 0.02% | 76,587 |
| 2024 | 0.019% | 69,696 |
| 2025 | 0.018% | 61,655 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.018% | 19,546 |
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
Variations (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line (C57)”. Lichess data as of 28 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-two-knights-defense-traxler-counterattack-bishop-sacrifice-line