3. Open Catalan with 7.Ne5 Nc6 8.Nxc6
With 7.Ne5 White opens the diagonal of the g2 Bishop. After the exchange on c6 Black has doubled c-pawns and holds the c4 pawn with ...Bxa3 and ...Ba6; the White Queen enters on a5 against the weak pawns.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4 5.Nf3 Be7 6.O-O O-O 7.Ne5 Nc6 8.Nxc6 bxc6 9.Na3 Bxa3 10.bxa3 Ba6 11.Qd2 Rb8 12.Qa5 Qc8
Move by move
- 1.d4 – White occupies the center with the Queen's pawn: it controls e5 and c5 and prepares c4, the first step of the Catalan.
- 1...Nf6 – Black develops the Knight and controls e4: it postpones the choice between ...d5, ...e6 and the Indian defenses.
- 2.c4 – White gains space with the c-pawn: it controls d5 and prepares Nc3 or the g3 fianchetto.
- 2...e6 – Black opens the f8 Bishop and prepares ...d5: this is the structure of the Queen's Gambit Declined, against which the Catalan is designed.
- 3.g3 – The Catalan: White prepares the fianchetto on g2, from where the Bishop will aim at d5 and the whole Black queenside.
- 3...d5 – Black occupies d5: now the g2 Bishop will have a pawn in front of it, but the c4 pawn attacks it and the tension remains.
- 4.Bg2 – The Bishop settles on the long diagonal: it presses on d5 and, if Black captures on c4, it will hit b7 and a8.
- 4...dxc4 – The Open Catalan: Black takes the c4 pawn and frees d5, but opens the diagonal of the g2 Bishop. White will recover the pawn with Qa4+, Qc2 or Ne5.
- 5.Nf3 – White develops the Knight and prepares castling: it is in no hurry to recapture c4, because the pawn is hard to hold.
- 5...Be7 – Black develops the Bishop and prepares castling: for now it gives up holding the c4 pawn with ...a6 and ...b5.
- 6.O-O – White castles: the c4 pawn is not going anywhere, development comes first.
- 6...O-O – Black castles: it must now decide whether to hold the c4 pawn with ...a6 and ...b5.
- 7.Ne5 – The Knight jumps to e5: it opens the diagonal of the g2 Bishop against b7 and attacks the c4 pawn.
- 7...Nc6 – Black challenges the e5 Knight: after the exchange on c6 it holds the c4 pawn, but its structure is ruined.
- 8.Nxc6 – White exchanges on c6 to ruin the Black structure: the c6 and c4 pawns will be isolated and on the diagonal of the g2 Bishop.
- 8...bxc6 – Black recaptures with the b-pawn: it has an extra pawn, but the c7, c6 and c4 pawns are doubled and weak.
- 9.Na3 – The Knight goes to a3 to recapture the c4 pawn with Nxc4.
- 9...Bxa3 – Black gives up the Bishop for the Knight: it holds the c4 pawn and ruins the White structure, but White has the bishop pair.
- 10.bxa3 – White recaptures toward the center: it has doubled a-pawns, but the open b-file and the bishop pair.
- 10...Ba6 – The Bishop defends the c4 pawn: for Black it is the only way to hold it.
- 11.Qd2 – The Queen goes to d2 to switch to a5 or b4, from where it will attack the weak pawns of the queenside.
- 11...Rb8 – The Rook occupies the open b-file, from where it can enter on b2: Black seeks counterplay.
- 12.Qa5 – The Queen attacks the a6 Bishop, which is not defended, and the c7 pawn.
- 12...Qc8 – The Queen defends the a6 Bishop and the c7 pawn.
How to exploit the position
Black has an extra pawn but three weak pawns on the c-file; White has the bishop pair and active pieces.
- Take on c6 with the Bishop: the pawn is not defended and material is level again.
- Bf4 attacks the c7 pawn together with the Queen on a5; behind c7 stands the Rook on b8.
- The a1 Rook goes to b1 to contest the b-file.
- With e4 and e5 gain space and drive away the f6 Knight, the best defender of the Black King.
Master tips
The doubled c-pawns
After Nxc6 bxc6 Black has the pawns c7, c6 and c4: they are slow and easy to attack with the g2 Bishop and the Queen.