← Alekhine's Defense

Practice: Exchange Variation

Quiet, positional approach

White releases the central tension by exchanging on d6. A more positional approach that avoids the theory-heavy Four Pawns Attack.

1. e4 Nf6
2. e5 Nd5
3. d4 d6
4. c4 Nb6
5. exd6 cxd6
6. Nc3
♟

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Key strategic ideas

  • 1...Nf6 invites White to chase the knight with e5, gaining space but stretching the pawns thin.
  • Black's plan is to provoke White into pushing pawns, then strike back when the pawn chain becomes overstretched.
  • After White pushes e5, Black retreats the knight and waits for the right moment to break with ...d6 or ...c5.

Common mistakes & traps

  • The Four Pawns Attack (4.c4 Nb6 5.f4 d6 6.e5) looks scary for Black, but 6...Nf5 7.Be3 dxe5 8.fxe5 c5! gives Black excellent counterplay. White's centre starts to fall apart.
  • After 2.e5 Nd5 3.c4 Nb6 4.d4 d6 5.exd6 exd6, the position is equal. Black's ...d5 break fixes the knight on b6 and challenges White's centre.

Pawn structure notes

White's stretched pawns (e5, d4, c4) against Black's solid d6 and e6. Black wants to prove that White's centre is a target. After Black plays ...d5, the pawn structure simplifies.

Tips

  • After 5.exd6 cxd6 Black has a solid but slightly passive position
  • White aims for a slight endgame edge with the Nc3–Nf3 setup
  • Black must play actively with …Nc6, …Be6, and …d5 to equalise

About this line

This line is rated intermediate. Practice it repeatedly until you can play the entire sequence without thinking. The in-app trainer tracks your perfect streaks and celebrates milestones.