Fried Liver Attack
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| Moves | 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Nxf7 Kxf7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ECO | C57 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Origin | Polerio vs. Domenico, Rome c. 1610 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Named after | Italian dish ("Fegatelli" is pork liver sliced up, wrapped in fat netting and cooked over a fire; likewise Black's king is wrapped in White's mating net[1]) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parent | Two Knights Defense | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Synonym(s) | Fegatello Attack | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fried Liver Attack, also called the Fegatello Attack (named after an Italian dish), is a chess opening. This opening is a variation of the Two Knights Defense in which White sacrifices a knight for an attack on Black's king. The opening begins with the moves:
This is the Two Knights Defense where White has chosen the offensive line 4.Ng5, but Black's last move is risky (other Black choices include 5...Na5, 5...b5, and 5...Nd4). White can now get an advantage with 6.d4 (the Lolli Attack); however, the Fried Liver Attack involves a knight sacrifice on f7, defined by the moves:
The opening is classified as code C57 in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings.
| This article uses algebraic notation to describe chess moves. |
History[]
The Fried Liver Attack has been known for many centuries, the earliest known example being a game[2] played by Giulio Cesare Polerio before 1606.[3]
Considerations[]
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | ||
| 8 |              | 8 | |||||||
| 7 | 7 | ||||||||
| 6 | 6 | ||||||||
| 5 | 5 | ||||||||
| 4 | 4 | ||||||||
| 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| 2 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | ||
Play usually continues 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3 (diagram). Black will play 8...N6b4 and follow up with ...c6, bolstering his pinned knight on d5. White can force the b4-knight to abandon protection of the d5-knight with 9.a3?, but after 9...Nxc2+ 10.Kd1 Nxa1 11.Nxd5 Qh4! he loses. Therefore White will choose one of 9.Qe4, 9.Bb3 or 9.0-0. White has a strong attack, but it has not yet been proven to be decisive. Because defence is harder to play than attack in this variation, the Fried Liver is dangerous for Black, particularly with shorter time controls. Another consideration is that after 5...Nxd5 White can deviate with 6.d4! (the Lolli Attack), which many consider stronger than the Fried Liver Attack.
References[]
- ^ Doazan, G.-E. (April 1843). "Un manuscrit sur les éches" [A manuscript on chess]. Palamède.
- ^ "Giulio Cesare Polerio vs. Domenico, Rome 1610". Chessgames.com.
- ^ Polerio–Giovanni Domenico d'Arminio must have been played before 1606 (Polerio's last sign of life, see: Peter Monté The Classical Era of Modern Chess (McFarland 2014), p. 273)
Further reading[]
- Computer Analysis of the Fried Liver and Lolli, Dan Heisman, Chessbase CHNESO001U
- Re-Fried Liver, by Jon Edwards, Chess Life, July 2009, pp. 32–34.
External links[]
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The Wikibook Chess Opening Theory has a page on the topic of: Fried Liver Attack |
- The Fried Liver Attack blog by GM Boris Alterman
- Fried Liver Attack The Chess Website by Kevin Butler
- Chess openings