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Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e5/2. Nf3/2...Nc6/3. Nc3/3...Nf6/4. Bc4/4...Nxe4

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< Chess Opening Theory‎ | 1. e4‎ | 1...e5‎ | 2. Nf3‎ | 2...Nc6‎ | 3. Nc3‎ | 3...Nf6‎ | 4. Bc4
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Four Knights Game
a b c d e f g h
8a8 black rookb8 black kingc8 black bishopd8 black queene8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black kingh8 black rook8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black kingf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawn7
6a6 black kingb6 black kingc6 black knightd6 black kinge6 black kingf6 black kingg6 black kingh6 black king6
5a5 black kingb5 black kingc5 black kingd5 black kinge5 black pawnf5 black kingg5 black kingh5 black king5
4a4 black kingb4 black kingc4 white bishopd4 black kinge4 black knightf4 black kingg4 black kingh4 black king4
3a3 black kingb3 black kingc3 white knightd3 black kinge3 black kingf3 white knightg3 black kingh3 black king3
2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 black kingf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawn2
1a1 white rookb1 black kingc1 white bishopd1 white queene1 white kingf1 black kingg1 black kingh1 white rook1
a b c d e f g h
Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN)

r1bqkb1r/pppp1ppp/2n5/4p3/2B1n3/2N2N2/PPPP1PPP/R1BQK2R w

Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bc4 Nxe4

Four Knights Game, Italian Variation, 4...Nxe4

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Black makes a temporary sacrifice of the knight, and if White plays 5.Nxe4, Black can play ...d5 with a fork which wins back the piece. This tactical trick does not win any material for Black, but knocking out the important White center pawn on e4 has secured Black a good foothold in the center.

Even so, 5.Nxe4, falling in with Black's plan is White's best move. 5.Bxf7+ looks good at first glance because Black's king gets slightly exposed, but White is not developed enough to sustain an attack. 5.O-O can cause problems for black if they are not careful.

The tactic employed by Black is called the "Fork Trick" and pops up in a number of openings, but it is particularly potent in the Four Knights.

Theory table

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For explanation of theory tables, see theory table and for notation, see algebraic notation..
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4.Bc4 Nxe4!

. 5 6 7
1 Nxe4
d5		 Bd3
dxe4		 Bxe4
Bd6		 =
2 Bxf7+
Kxf7		 Nxe4
d5		 Neg5+
Kg8		 -/+

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References

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Wikipedia has related information at Four Knights Game

  • Evans, Larry D. The Fork Trick. Published in two parts (April 2000 and May 2000) issues of Chess Life. Online facsimiles of the articles are available at chesscamp.net.
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