Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense 4…d6 5. O-O
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Statistics from Lichess
593,608 games: White 51.7% / Draw 5.1% / Black 43.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 148,848149K | ||
| 132,349132K | ||
| Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Steinitz Deferred | 128,278128K | |
| 123,656124K | ||
| 17,68618K | ||
| 12,32912K | ||
| 7,2597,259 | ||
| 6,9196,919 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.38 White is slightly better
Best play: 5... Nf6 6. c3 Be7 7. Re1 O-O 8. h3 b5 9. Bc2 Re8 10. d4
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 54% under 1400, 50% at 2200 and up and 58% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 179K | |
| 1400–1799 | 426K | |
| 1800–2199 | 305K | |
| 2200 and up | 61K | |
| Masters, over the board | 2,628 |
Master games
- Firouzja, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Grischuk, A. – Mamedyarov, S.
- Harikrishna, P. – Mamedyarov, S.
- Aronian, L. – Praggnanandhaa, R.
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Rapport, R.
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
Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense (ECO C72, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 d6 5. O-O (5 moves).
In 593,608 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.7%, Black 43.2% and 5.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 5…b5, in 25% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Ruy Lopez: Closed, Kecskemet Variation.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 5. O-O
5…Bg4 scores best for Black: 49.7%, with Black winning 47.1% and White 47.7% of 124K games. The most played answer, 5…b5, scores lowest: 42.6% in 149K games. Stockfish's first choice is 5…Nf6.
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
This line has lost ground since 2016: 0.021% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.028%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.028% | 9,860 |
| 2017 | 0.029% | 15,834 |
| 2018 | 0.028% | 21,677 |
| 2019 | 0.026% | 32,100 |
| 2020 | 0.026% | 75,250 |
| 2021 | 0.022% | 85,690 |
| 2022 | 0.021% | 79,461 |
| 2023 | 0.023% | 87,998 |
| 2024 | 0.023% | 81,015 |
| 2025 | 0.021% | 72,497 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.02% | 22,342 |
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)
Transpositions
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense (C72)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-morphy-defense-modern-steinitz-defense-4