9. Leningrad Variation (4.Bg5 h6 5.Bh4 c5)

Pinning the f6 knight: how to punish the bishop with h6, g5 and a central counterattack.

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Bg5 h6 5.Bh4 c5 6.d5 b5 7.e3 g5 8.Bg3 Ne4

Move by move

1.d4 – White occupies the center with the d-pawn, protected by the queen, and frees the c1 bishop. This is the move that starts Queen's Gambit, Catalan and Nimzo-Indian games.
1...Nf6 – Black develops the knight toward the center and immediately prevents 2.e4. With Nf6 Black stays flexible: he can choose between the Nimzo-Indian, Queen's Indian, King's Indian or the Queen's Gambit Declined.
2.c4 – White gains space on the queenside and attacks the d5 square from a distance. White now threatens Nc3 and e4 to build a big pawn center.
2...e6 – Black opens the diagonal for the f8 bishop and prepares both d5 and Bb4. Compared with 2...d5, Black stays elastic: he waits to see whether White plays Nc3, which allows the Nimzo-Indian.
3.Nc3 – White develops the knight and prepares e4: if Black doesn't react, 4.e4 would give White the ideal center with pawns on c4, d4 and e4.
3...Bb4 – The move of the Nimzo-Indian: the bishop pins the c3 knight to the king, so Nc3 no longer controls e4 and the e4 push becomes difficult. Black is ready to capture on c3 to double White's pawns.
4.Bg5 – The Leningrad Variation: the bishop pins the f6 knight to the queen, so Black has less control of e4 and d5. For now White avoids doubled pawns and develops actively.
4...h6 – Black immediately asks the bishop to decide: capture on f6, giving up the bishop pair, or retreat to h4 where it will soon be attacked by ...g5.
5.Bh4 – White keeps the f6 knight pinned. The bishop on h4, however, remains exposed to ...g5, which will chase it away while gaining space on the kingside.
5...c5 – Black attacks d4, taking advantage of the c1 bishop being far from the queenside. White must choose between d5 to gain space or e3 to support the center.
6.d5 – White gains space with d5 and blocks the c8 bishop behind Black's pawns. The d5 pawn is advanced, though, and Black immediately tries to undermine it.
6...b5 – Black attacks c4 to remove the d5 pawn's support. If cxb5, Black plays ...exd5 and gets the center and the diagonal for the c8 bishop.
7.e3 – White indirectly reinforces d5 by opening the path for the f1 bishop, which can defend c4. He doesn't take on b5 so as not to leave Black the center.
7...g5 – Black chases away the h4 bishop and breaks the pin on the f6 knight. Black weakens the kingside but gains time and frees the knight to jump to e4.
8.Bg3 – The bishop retreats to g3 on the h2-b8 diagonal, from where it controls d6 and e5. It remains vulnerable to ...Nh5 or ...Ne4, though.
8...Ne4 – The knight jumps to e4 and attacks two pieces: the c3 knight, pinned by the b4 bishop, and the g3 bishop. White must defend c3 at once.

How to exploit the position

Sharp position: Black has attacked c3 and g3 with the knight and gained space on the kingside, but has weakened h6 and g5. White has to defend c3, usually with Qc2.

Play ...Qf6: the queen attacks c3 along the diagonal and also presses on f2, increasing the pressure on the pinned knight.
Exchange with ...Nxg3: after hxg3 Black has the bishop pair, even though the h-file opens for White's rook.
Break the center with ...bxc4 and ...exd5 to open the c8 bishop's diagonal, which on b7 aims at d5.
Don't castle short in a hurry: the g5 and h6 pawns are advanced and Black's king can stay in the center or go to the queenside.

Master tips

Double attack with ...Ne4

After ...g5 and Bg3, the knight on e4 attacks c3 and g3 at the same time.