Two Knights Defense, 4.Ng5 Nxe4: take on f7, not on e4

In the Two Knights Defense, 4.Ng5 lines up knight and bishop on f7. Black's usual answer is 4...d5. Grabbing a pawn with 4...Nxe4 instead is considered unsound, but it sets a trap of its own, and the natural reply falls into it.

The line

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Nxe4.

After 4...Nxe4. White to move.

The trap: 5.Nxe4?

Taking back on e4 looks obvious. But 5...d5! attacks the knight on e4 and the bishop on c4 at once. White has to save the bishop, and Black wins the piece back with a good game.

After 4...Nxe4. Step through 5.Nxe4? to see the fork.

The move: 5.Bxf7+!

5.Bxf7+! Ke7 6.d4! (6.d3 is also good). Black's king has had to walk to e7, where it can't castle, the knight on e4 is still attacked by the knight on g5, and White's d-pawn opens lines towards the king. White has a clear advantage.

After 4...Nxe4. Step through 5.Bxf7+! and 6.d4.

Quiet moves lose the knight

With the knight gone from f6, the knight on g5 is attacked twice: by the knight on e4 and by Black's queen on d8. A quiet move like 5.d3 simply drops it to 5...Nxg5. 5.Nxf7 is playable, but after 5...Qh4 Black has enough counterplay for an equal game.

The idea to remember

When your opponent grabs a pawn and leaves something loose, look for the forcing move before the obvious recapture. Here the check on f7 comes first, and the knight on e4 can be dealt with afterwards.

Train it

This is one of the opening traps OptiChess teaches as a play-through: the moves play themselves until the moment you need to look closely, then you find the move. The habit behind it, asking what your opponent can do after your move, is the blunder check.

Why puzzles don't transfer to your games

Try it. Real positions, set at your level, every answer checked against the board. No account needed to start.

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