Caissa Codex
C57

Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit

Chess diagram: Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit after 6. d4

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.

Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.

Statistics from Lichess

2,234 games: White 46.0% / Draw 3.2% / Black 50.9%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
1,2111,211
822822
136136
3535
1919
44
22
22

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.18 The position is about equal

Best play: 6... Nxd4 7. c3 Nc6 8. Bc4 Qe8 9. b4 Bb6 10. a4 a6 11. Bf7

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

Overview

Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit (ECO C57, Open Games) is a gambit in the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack, Bishop Sacrifice Line, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 Bc5 5. Bxf7+ Ke7 6. d4 (6 moves).

In 2,234 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.0%, Black 50.9% and 3.2% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 6…Bxd4, in 54% 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
What would you like to send?

Markdown supported (headings ###, bold, lists, links). Submissions are reviewed before publishing.

How to play against the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit

The most played answer, 6…Bxd4, also scores best for Black: 55.3%, with Black winning 53.8% and White 43.2% of 1,211 games. Of the main answers, 6…exd4 scores lowest: 35.3%. Stockfish's first choice is 6…Nxd4.

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, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit (C57)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-two-knights-defense-traxler-variation-trencianske-teplice-gambit

https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-two-knights-defense-traxler-variation-trencianske-teplice-gambit