Ruy Lopez

What is a variation where black can put white under a lot of pressure in the Ruy Lopez?  I play better when I have pressure on my opponents.

Chigorian, Breyer, Marshall, Herman-Steiner, Zaitzev, Open Variations?

archangel

if you want to pressure white, the birds defence is not the way to go. you move the same piece twice in the opening only to get it exchanged and getting yourself a pawnweakness. birdplayers defend themself with that they think the d4pawn is restricting white queenside somehow and that white bishop is slightly misplaced. its possible to play and a respected opening but i dont think its your taste at all:) i play it as white sometimes and i feel im the one having all the fun

by the way what kind of pressure are you talking about? i dont think black can press white positionally at all because of whites nice center, but im an amateur. what do i know so maybe we are talking about pressuring white with tactics until he breaks? i only know the chigorin so i cant answer it. i hear the zaitzev is very complicated and ambitious.

jeremy silman calls the zaitzev " a dynamic line that often leads to some of the most complicated and insane positions ever seen"

It depends on who your opponent is, how far he (also you) knows the opening theory. "Weak but sharp" line is sometime considered a repressive approach because the opponent has the pressure to defend correctly. But I believe such defense as the Schliemann is not what you want, but the Open Defense may be. On the other hand, the "deep mainline" such the Chigorin and the Zaitsev are out of context.

Considering your rating, I believe a repressive variation should employ the ideas contained in the Marshall Attack (Note how deep into the mainline this variation is).

1. Black should delay d-pawn move to find a chance for ...d5 instead of ...d6, and at the same time "force" White to opt a positional (thus passive) d3 instead of d4.

2. Black should play ...Bb7

So, there are at least 3 variations you could play (Marshall Attack, Trajkovic or Arkhangelsk). The choice is depends on both sides' preparation because the deeper you go into the mainline, the more prepared you should be because your opponent can deviate to lines that may even put you under pressure (for example, if you choose the Trajkovic or Marshall Attack, you should be prepared with the Center Attack 6.d4).

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5!? (Schliemann)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4! (Open Defense)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 b5! 6.Bb3 Bb7! (Archangel)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 Bb7! (Trajkovic)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.c3 (White may opt for Anti-Marshall here) d5! (Marshall Attack).

I'm weak at tactics, and playing as White I don't like playing against the Open Defense, but am happy playing against the Schliemann. And the Marshall is I think feared by many in all levels, and I choose Anti-Marshall 8.a4, but still don't like the game.

i dont understand what you mean by out of context. but english is not my first language:)

It's not my first language too :)

If you and your opponent know a lot about an opening theory, you will usually don't want to play an early deviation, because such variations are usually weaker or there is a "refutation" (a way to get to a plus position) known by those who study the variation. That's why in the above variations, the Open Defense is subjectively "stronger" than the Schliemann (both are sharp lines) and the Marshall Attack is "stronger" than the Archangel (both and the Trajkovic are attacking lines).

People usually play the early variation because they know their opponent doesn't know better about the line. As for Radjabov playing the Schliemann, you can see that he has done his homework for that, and has made the defense a surprise to his opponents.

Again, the more both sides know the opening, the higher the tendency to go deeper to the mainline, because the mainline is usually theoretically stronger than the other lines. Unfortunately, the more both sides know about the opening and the chess itself, the more difficult it is to avoid the draw, or to find sharp enough lines.

I would say that in GM level, if you want a theoretically strong position but don't want a draw you should pick something like the Zaitsev, the Chigorin (I would guess that the Chigorin is one of the theoretical best play for both sides) and the like. But if you are in that level, you will surely not come up with question such as "What is a variation where black can put white under a lot of pressure in the Ruy Lopez?" because you know too much already.

Imo, players in lower level have a tendency to take advices that "work" in higher level. For example, when in higher level they say the Berlin is drawish, then they don't want it. That's funny because often the drawishness is the sign that the defense is theoretically strong (but often not sharp enough for higher level players). For that, I may also suggest the Berlin because the position is equal and with active piece play (for example Black can also play the ...Bc5 such as in the Cordel Defense), so hopefully the stronger player will be able to turn it into repressive position. The benefit of such early deviation (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6) is that both sides have more possibility to make improvisations.

Another underestimated line but imo is strong for Black (but not a repressive line) is the Cozio Defense (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nge7).

Two good lines for you.

The f5 gambit if you want a sharp game, and the 3...g6 variation if you want something solid.

I find that the Archangel and The New Archangel are two variations that I feel most uncomfortable playing against. I'm new to the Ruy Lopez, and these variations give me the most trouble.

The Marshall and the Archangel are probably two of the sharpest lines.

Putting white on a "lot of pressure"?

Karpov variation is also good "tough to crack" defense

yeah, I think he wants the marshall alright...

thank you, yusuf_prasojo, for an excellent overview:)