Unlock the Power of the Queen’s Gambit and Outwit Your Opponents!

Today I’d like to teach you the Queen’s Gambit chess opening, which happens after the first moves: 1.d4 d5 2.c4. . A lot of youngsters believe that it’s named after the famous Netflix series, but either way, you really need to know how to play it. My goal for today is to give you a complete overview concisely. Still, it will provide you with a quite in-depth knowledge of this opening, including common errors, some cool traps to be aware of.

Let’s start from the very beginning because I really want you to have a complete understanding of every move and every idea of this opening, instead of just relying on memorizing various operations, which is hard actually. It’s much better to understand the logic, to understand why certain moves are considered best, why they’re considered natural and proper.

If you’re a more advanced level player, then some of these ideas are already familiar to you. If you’re a more beginner level player, then this will be precious. Either way, we’re going to fill in the gaps so that you have a complete all-around knowledge of this opening.

What is the goal of an opening? It is to develop your pieces (such as your knights, bishops), castle, and control the middle of the board. How do you do that? Well, in order to achieve that goal, usually, the first move is going to be either e4 or d4 because that’s how you start controlling the game right away.

If we take a look at the move d4, which is clearly one of the oldest and most well-known chess openings, there is a little advantage of d4 compared to e4. From here, the d4-pawn is already defended by the queen, so it can never blunder. For that reason, the Queen’s Gambit is a more solid, more risk-free opening. More positional players usually love playing this.

1.d4

Now after d4, ideally speaking, White would love to take the center fully by playing 2.e4 on the next move. Let’s say if Black plays some random move, we’re going to play e4. And now, just look at how many squares White starts controlling. White took the center, which gave him also a lot of squares additionally, which they control. By moving the pawns forward, we gave some more breathing space for the pieces standing behind them, and now they also started to be involved even from their original squares. I’ve just marked all the squares that White’s pieces are controlling, and you see that it’s pretty much the entire board. White achieved that within just two moves. That’s the power of taking the center.

For that reason, normally Black does not want to let White accomplish their plan. They’re going to counteract White in their attempt to play pawn e4. Black has two main options: it’s either to play the move d5, so that the pawn takes control of this square or to bring their knight to f6, and then the knight will take control of that square. So, these are the two main moves of Black, either d5 or Nf6. Let’s say Black plays d5

White Plays 2. Nc3

2.Nc3 Nf6 

Why Not just Develop Simply the Knight (2. Nc3)

The answer is that by developing the knight, White gains no advantage. Black will develop just the knight to f6 (2..Nf6)  as well, and the game will remain equal. One of the goals of 2. Nc3 is to follow it with e4. This move aims to accomplish the goal of greater influence over central squares. However, Black can counteract this strategy by playing a somewhat symmetric move such as pawn d6, followed by bishop f5.

This move controls the e4-square, and if Black ever needs to, they can also play bishop f5 and control that way. Although White wants to play e4, they can’t achieve that easily. As a result, Nc3 does not really bring the result that White is hoping for.

2. c4

So, White must try to undermine Black’s center from the other side by playing c4 and attacking the center in that way. The Queen’s Gambit involves gambling a pawn, in fact. Black can’t retain that pawn anyway, so it’s not really a gambit. White is not even sacrificing the pawn, really. They are sacrificing it just for a moment or two because they will get it back.

If Black Plays 2…dxc4

Now, let’s look at Black’s options. Black’s aim is to eliminate this pawn, which will give them an advantage in the center. One option is to take the pawn, but this move comes with its own set of problems. After taking the pawn, interesting things start happening.

3. Nc3?

Currently, the most played move by amateurs is 3. Nc3, but this move is by far the most popular and also wrong.

3. e3

If you don’t want to engage in this complex variation, the easiest thing you can do is take the pawn on d5 back as soon as possible by playing pawn to e3, preparing to capture the pawn on c4 on the next move.

If Black Plays 3.b4?

Black usually should give up the pawn and let you capture it on the next move. If Black tries to hold on to the pawn by playing pawn to b5, however, they will fall into a common trap. Despite being an old trap, over 200,000 players have fallen for it. The problem with pawn b5 is that it defends the pawn on c4, but it also creates a weakness on the a6-square.

2..e6

We’re approaching the mainlines of the queen’s gambit, so the mainline here is the pawn e6 move. We already know that, ideally speaking, Black wants to maintain their presence in the center, so they don’t want to give up their center; and then, the question is, how do you defend that pawn? and you can do that in two different ways: it’s either playing 2..c6 the Slav Defense or playing 2..e6 instead of that, which is the Queen’s Gambit

What does White usually do after that? Well, simply develop; actually, you don’t even need to know too much theory. Check out how to develop for White from the below game.

3. dxc5

If you do not want to study any opening theory and you want to keep it simple for you, there is a way to simplify matters for White: you can trade here in the center, so that you never have to worry about this potential tension or Black capturing your pawn here on c4; you can simply exchange and, after that, you do pretty much the same developing moves. Check out how to develop for White from the below game and avoid some traps.

Conclusion

The Queen’s Gambit is a solid and well-known chess opening that aims to control the center of the board and develop pieces. The opening starts with the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4, where White gambles a pawn to attack the center from the side. The Queen’s Gambit is a popular opening among positional players who prefer a more risk-free game. Understanding the logic and ideas behind the opening is crucial rather than relying on memorization of moves.

You can download the PGN of these variations below: