Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Sanders-Alapin Variation
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 6. O-O d6 7. d4 Bd7
The Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Sanders-Alapin Variation is a chess opening classified as ECO C52, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 6. O-O d6 7. d4 Bd7. It is a line of the Italian Game. White is to move.
This exact move order didn't appear in our sample of 12.6 million Lichess games: it's a rare line.
Engine evaluation: −0.14 (Stockfish, depth 31; best line 8. Qb3 Qe7 9. dxe5 dxe5 10. Rd1 Rd8)
- ECO
- C52
- Moves
- 14 plies
- FEN
r2qk1nr/pppb1ppp/2np4/b3p3/2BPP3/2P2N2/P4PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 1 8- PGN
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 6. O-O d6 7. d4 Bd7
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Master games
2 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 100%, draw 0%, Black 0%). The strongest:
- Yakini Tchouka (1923) – Victor Emeraldo RASOAMANANA (1477) 1-0 · Francophonie Rapid Teams · 2022-06-05
Search all games of the Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Sanders-Alapin Variation and its sub-variations
Comes from
Italian Game: Evans Gambit (6. O-O d6) 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 6. O-O d6
More Italian Game lines (all)
- Italian Game C50
- Italian Game: Anti-Fried Liver Defense C50
- Italian Game: Blackburne-Kostić Gambit C50
- Italian Game: Classical Variation, Albin Gambit C50
- Italian Game: Deutz Gambit C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo (3… Bc5 4. d3) C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo (5… d6 6. d3) C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo (5. O-O O-O) C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo (5… O-O 6. d3) C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo, Canal Variation C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo, Dubois Variation C50
- Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo, Italian Four Knights Variation C50
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.