Defending Against the Italian and Tearing Down the Berlin Wall: Opening Study
The Italian Opening
3. Bc4 introduces the Italian Opening. It is the 2nd most popular way to counter 1...e5 and 2...Nc6 (3. Bb5 the Ruy Lopez or Spanish is the most popular move). It is, however, the most popular move for beginning chess players, so it is important to know how to counter this move whether you are a beginner or a Grandmaster. Below are some puzzles with my preferred lines to counter this opening. The moves that you are trying to guess are just my preference, not necessarily the only good moves, so don't be disappointed if you do not guess the exact moves. Good luck!
Notice how Black keeps giving back the pawn to let their pieces out faster. This is the modern way of combating a dangerous gambit. White's isolated pawn on c3 gives Black a structural advantage so Black just needs to catch up in development and they'll have a better position.
The Berlin Defense
Kramnik's Berlin Defenses in his World Champion Match victory against Kasparov:
My Preference 5. Re1!?
Here's a great video on this move: http://www.chess.com/video/player/shirov-vs-kramnik-the-perfect-game
