Alekhine Defense: Two Pawns Attack, Lasker Variation
1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. c5
The Alekhine Defense: Two Pawns Attack, Lasker Variation is a chess opening classified as ECO B02, reached after 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. c5. It is a line of the Alekhine Defense. Black is to move. 2 named lines continue from this position.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 2,781 times by this move order. White won 48%, 5% were drawn and Black won 47%. The most popular continuation is 4… Nd5 (99% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.29 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 4… Nd5 5. Nc3 e6 6. d4 d6 7. cxd6)
- ECO
- B02
- Moves
- 7 plies
- FEN
rnbqkb1r/pppppppp/1n6/2P1P3/8/8/PP1P1PPP/RNBQKBNR b KQkq - 0 4- PGN
1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. c5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 717 | |
| 1500-1999 | 1,275 | |
| 2000+ | 789 | |
| All | 2,781 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4… Nd5 | 2,745 (99%) | |
| 4… Nc4 | 14 (1%) | |
| 4… d6 | 10 (0%) | |
| 4… Na4 | 4 (0%) | |
| 4… e6 | 3 (0%) | |
| 4… d5 | 2 (0%) | |
| 4… c6 | 2 (0%) |
Master games
521 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 35%, draw 20%, Black 45%). The strongest:
- GM Magnus Carlsen (2840) – GM Olexandr Bortnyk (2604) 1/2-1/2 · Titled Tue 27th Jan 2026 · 2026-01-27
- GM Vasif Durarbayli (2628) – GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2757) 1/2-1/2 · Shusha Chess Blitz 2022 · 2022-09-24
- GM Anish Giri (2764) – IM Viktor Gazik (2539) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 15th Sept · 2020-09-15
- GM Thomas Luther (2581) – GM Christian Bauer (2646) 1-0 · TCh-AUT 2014-15 · 2015-02-27
- GM Neuris Delgado Ramirez (2621) – GM Olexandr Bortnyk (2598) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 2nd June · 2020-06-02
Search all games of the Alekhine Defense: Two Pawns Attack, Lasker Variation and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- FM ArdianJashari (2465) – ChessWarrior_222 (2811) 1-0 · 2026-09-01 · 180 + 0s
- IM filolog (2701) – IM Arashy_89 (2539) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
- ShadowNinja7i (2638) – FM Konnov_Oleg (2553) 0-1 · 2026-09-07 · 600 + 0s
Comes from
Alekhine Defense: Two Pawns Attack 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4
Continuations
- Alekhine Defense: Hunt Variation, Lasker Simul Gambit B02 · 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. c5 Nd5 5. Bc4 e6 6. Nc3
- Alekhine Defense: Hunt Variation, Matsukevich Gambit B02 · 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. c5 Nd5 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 d6 7. Bg5
More Alekhine Defense lines (all)
- Alekhine Defense (1. e4 Nf6) B02
- Alekhine Defense: Brooklyn Variation B02
- Alekhine Defense: Brooklyn Variation, Everglades Variation B02
- Alekhine Defense: Buckley Attack B02
- Alekhine Defense: Hunt Variation, Mikenas Gambit B02
- Alekhine Defense: Kmoch Variation B02
- Alekhine Defense: Krejcik Variation B02
- Alekhine Defense: Krejcik Variation, Krejcik Gambit B02
- Alekhine Defense: Maróczy Variation B02
- Alekhine Defense: Mokele Mbembe B02
- Alekhine Defense: Mokele Mbembe, Modern Line B02
- Alekhine Defense: Mokele Mbembe, Vavra Defense B02
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.