Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fried Liver Attack
ECO C57 · 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Nxf7
The Fried Liver Attack, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Nxf7, sacrifices a knight to drag Black's king into the open. It is one of the best-known attacks in chess and a classic lesson about the f7 square.
Plans for White
After 6...Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3, White piles up on the pinned d5 knight with Nc3 (or Nc3, O-O and Re1), and the black king has no safe square. The quieter 6.d4 (the Lolli) is often even stronger.
Plans for Black
Black must defend precisely, usually with ...Ncb4 and ...c6, keeping the d5 knight protected. Even then, White's attack is dangerous in practice.
Typical pawn structures
Open center with Black's king on e6; material imbalance (knight for pawns).
Who it suits
White players who like sharp attacks against opponents who play 5...Nxd5, and anyone who wants to learn why the f7 square matters.
Common traps
The best defense is not to allow it: 5...Na5 sidesteps the attack. With White, beware that it only works after 5...Nxd5.
Related variations
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knight Attack
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Counterattack
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Polerio Defense
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Modern Bishop's Opening
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Open Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ponziani-Steinitz Gambit
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Perreux Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Kloss Gambit
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Lolli Attack
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Traxler Variation, Trencianske-Teplice Gambit
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Pincus Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fritz, Gruber Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Blackburne Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Colman Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Paoli Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Steinitz Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Keidansky Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Maróczy Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Fegatello Attack, Leonhardt Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knorre Variation
- Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Yurdansky Attack