Chess Opening Theory/1. d4/1...d5/2. c4/2...e6/3. Nc3/3...Be7

Charousek variation Queen's Gambit Declined D31 Alasortev variation 3...Be7 · Charousek variation Black stops White from playing the immediate 4. Bg5, practically forcing White into one of three options: /4. Nf3/, simply developing the knight. This is the most common and flexible response, since White doesn't reveal anything about their setup yet. If Black plays 4...Nf6 then 5. Bg5 transposes back into the main lines. /4. Bf4/ develops the bishop to f4 instead. White intends to enter the Harrwitz attack. /4. cxd5/ transposes into an exchange variation where Black has already played Be7, preventing White from usefully developing the bishop to g5. Theory table 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 Harrwitz attack 4. ... ... 5. Bf4 Exchange variation 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bf4 4. Bf4 Nf6 Queen's Gambit Declined Other_third_moves_for_Black References