Questions about the Evans Gambit

So… I was recently studying this Evans Gambit and a few questions popped up after a bit of (probably) thinking. I wonder if anyone of you reading this can help me… so here are the questions!

1. In the Evans Gambit, if black takes with the knight and retreats to a6 after pawn c3, what am I supposed to do? Like do I takes with the bishop or do something else?

2. Is there actually a way to decline this gambit? If so, how is it supposed to be declined and what is white supposed to play if this was possible?

3. Should I castle before pushing the d-pawn or do I just ignore the bishop that can go to b4 with check?

4. When I played around on an analysis board (on lichess lol) I “accidentally” found this variation called the Lasker defense and I didn’t really know how to play against it as white. The main reason (for me) is that it seems to be quite a balanced position and the whole point of playing this gambit is to control the center, but now white isn’t threatening to capture the bishop anymore and black’s e5 pawn doesn’t really need to capture white’s d4 pawn. Black could just leave the tension there and it feels like I sacrificed the pawn for a not-so-big advantage. And the Lasker Defense also requires white to castle before pushing, so this brings back to Q.2 and I don’t really know what to do. (And I feel like the move order of bishop d6 and pawn d6 for black in this variation is interchangeable? Like I can do either one of them first I guess)

Please help me if you can  Thank you!

(btw sorry if there is something that I said makes no sense at all, I’m still a Evans-gambit-learning-in-progress )

I by no means play erratic chess, and would never play the Evans, but Can't White take on e5 if ...Nxb4 instead of ...Bxb4?

After 4.b4 Nxb4? 5.Nxe5 Nh6 (how else you covering f7?) 6.d4!

 
Yeah… that makes sense. That’s why most of the players take with the bishop. But if so then after Nxe5 couldn’t black do Qf6 to threaten a mate and attack your knight at the same time? (For some reason I went back using the chess.com analysis board lol and stockfish also suggests g5 but I have no idea why.)

Evans gambit is super fun opening and one of the soundest gambits there is.

In exchange for a pawn you get a center, quick development and lots of attacking potential and you get to practice how to play with the initiative.

1- If 4...Nxb4  5.c3 Na6 you just play 6.Nxe5 threatening everything on f7. The moves should play itself then. I have played quite a decent amount of evans and don't think I have ever seen anyone play 5...Na6 though.

2- Yes it can be declined by 

Then you'll have a sort of italian game with a bunch of space on the queen side. If black takes on b4 you take on e5. If black defends e5 then you defend b4.

3. If black accepts and then retreats the bishop to c5 there are many different ways white can continue:

• You can castle before pushing d4, in which case after white castles the only decent response by black is  6...d6 
• You don't have to necessarily recapture on d4 as well and castle instead avoiding the check, for example 
  and it's very dangerous for black to capture on c3. If they do, saccing the bishop on f7 followed by Qd5 should be winning or at least a very good position
• If you push d4 before castling, then after 6. d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bb4+ you can block the check with Nd2 or you can even play Kf1. A relatively common variation that have happened to me a lot is (and it's also applicable to the above variation if they play Nge7)

Thanks you so much! The castling tip is especially useful - it’s a really good trap! But for No.1 I don’t think that Nxe5 is quite possible cuz as pfren (up there) mentioned. But still thanks a lot for your tips and tricks!

Thank you for the explaination! I (maybe) will start doing more puzzles sooner or later. But I still have something that I didn’t quite understand… I didn’t really know the point of playing Qg5, I see that it’s eyeing down on the g2 pawn and attacking the rook, but I’m still not sure what’s the whole point.
(By the way, for Qf6 I also had a little bit of problem on it - I’m a bit confused cuz this:

Is his position sort of equal now or does one side actually had an advantage? And I feel like black could now just make a developing + defending move like Nh6 or Ne7 and keep the tension there?)

Oh… ok, thanks for the information! Imma go do puzzles right now. Probably also watch some chess tactics videos.

Introduction to The Italian Game & Evans Gambit...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/introduction-to-the-italian-game

Of course 6.Nxe5 is possible. Not only possible it's winning for white.

IM pfren said that 5.Nxe5 is not a good move. But if you throw in a 5.c3 and black responds by retreating the knight to a6 black is toasted. He even said so it's positionally and tactically losing. But yes capturing the e5 pawn with the knight before throwing in c3 is losing because of both Qf6 and Qg5

If black retreats with the knight back to c6 then it's the same as if they captured with the bishop and then after c3 retreated the bishop back to c5 like you asked on #3.

Ah, yes, you’re right. I think I messed up 5.Nxe5 and 6.Nxe5  5.Nxe5 is losing cuz after the queen moves white can’t go d4 because it’ll simply be captured so white has to play some quite forcing moves. But in 6.Nxe5 that pawn has the c pawn to protect it so it’s alright. Hope I’m correct!