Caissa Codex
D66

Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Fianchetto Variation

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Fianchetto Variation after 9…b5

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

41,337 games: White 49.9% / Draw 7.0% / Black 43.1%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
34,10634K
5,2455,245
1,9541,954
1919
66
22
11
11

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

Engine evaluation

+0.32 White is slightly better

Best play: 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. O-O Rc8 12. Qe2 a6 13. a4 h6 14. Bh4 Nh5

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

Overview

Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Fianchetto Variation (ECO D66, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Modern Variation, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 c6 5. Nf3 Be7 6. e3 Nbd7 7. Rc1 O-O 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 (9 moves).

In 41,337 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.9%, Black 43.1% and 7.0% were drawn. White's most played move here is 10. Bd3, in 83% of those games.

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How to play against the Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Fianchetto Variation

The most played answer, 10. Bd3, also scores best for White: 54.1%, with White winning 50.6% and Black 42.4% of 34K games. Of the main answers, 10. Bb3 scores lowest: 49.5%. Stockfish's first choice is also 10. Bd3.

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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 4…c6 5. Nf3 Be7 6. e3 Nbd7 7. Rc1 O-O 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5, the position after Queen's Gambit Declined: Modern Variation also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Fianchetto Variation (D66)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-orthodox-defense-fianchetto-variation

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-orthodox-defense-fianchetto-variation