Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Original Marshall Attack
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Statistics from Lichess
82,677 games: White 34.4% / Draw 3.4% / Black 62.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 63,91964K | ||
| 5,5725,572 | ||
| 5,3435,343 | ||
| 2,4402,440 | ||
| 2,1262,126 | ||
| 1,3481,348 | ||
| 706706 | ||
| 487487 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.47 White is slightly better
Best play: 12. d4 c5 13. Bg5 cxd4 14. Qxd4 h6 15. Qxd8 Bxd8 16. Bc1 Bb7
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Original Marshall Attack (ECO C89, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 Nf6 (11 moves).
In 82,677 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 34.4%, Black 62.2% and 3.4% were drawn. White's most played move here is 12. d4, in 77% 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 Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Original Marshall Attack
12. h3 scores best for White: 41.0%, with White winning 38.8% and Black 56.7% of 5,343 games. The most played, 12. d4, scores 36.3% in 64K games, and 12. Re1 scores lowest: 35.6%. Stockfish's first choice is 12. d4.
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Marshall Attack, Original Marshall Attack (C89)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-marshall-attack-original-marshall-attack