The Winning Part of the Same Jerome Gambit – 4.c3 Nf6
5.0-0 Nxe4 6.b4 Nxf2 7.Bxf7+! (Part 2)
(by Yury V. Bukayev)
In this part of my new analytical research I’ll focus with the help of my new inventions on the nature of the move 7.Bxf7+: it is enough important to understand, is it a true gambit, or a true pseudogambit (like the standard system of the Queen’s “gambit” – 1.d4 d5 2.c4), or something other, in fact. Thus, this part of my new research is also a large development of my other analytical research ‘Lose Never with a Strong Deferred Jerome Gambit! (Part 3)’ (it was published in January 16, 2023, on Rick Kennedy’s blog).
For a lot of modern experts, the term “pseudogambit” is unnecessary, so they name 1.d4 d5 2.c4 as a usual gambit, and they are ready to name 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4 6.b4 Nxf2 7.Bxf7+! as a usual gambit too. Let’s not prevent them to do it. But, in fact, the following much more detailed approach can be created and used.
According to my definition of a true pseudogambit, the standard system of the Queen’s gambit is a true pseudogambit, because:
1) after the acceptance 2…dxc4 White can regain the material by the direct attack - 3.Qa4+ Nc6 4.e3 Be6 5.Bxc4
and
2) since White’s next move (the 4th move) after his start of this attack White’s other ways aren’t better than this attack, for example: 5.Qb5?! Rb8 6.Bxc4 a6 isn’t better for White, 5.Na3? a6 with 6…b5, 5.Nc3? a6! 6.Qd1 Na5 or 6…Nf6, 4.Nf3?! Bg4 5.Ne5?! Qxd4 6.Nxc6 Qd7 7.Qxc4 Qxc6! 8.Qxc6 bxc6.
Further, we can consider 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.0-0!? (It is a gambit, of course.) 5…Nxe4 6.b4!? Nxf2!? (I have considered it in the Part 1.) 7.Bxf7+!. Thus, let’s consider my new inventions after the acceptance – 7…Kxf7.
After 8.Qb3+ Ke8 White has two good ways (9.d4 Be7 10.Rxf2 and 9.bxc5), both of them lead to White’s advantage. Only one of them – 9.bxc5 – is a direct attack. It is only an illusion that the direct attack is finished. And after 9…Nd3 10.Qc4 Nxc1 the continuation of the direct attack – 11.Rxc1 – is worse than the other way – the gambit way 11.Na3!!. (Moreover, the gambit 10.Ne1!? Nf4 11.d4 Ne2+ 12.Kh1 Rf8 13.Nf3 is, it maybe, a little stronger than 10.Qc4.)
Thus, after 10.Qc4 Nxc1 on the way 11.Rxc1 d5! 12.cxd6 cxd6! White has enough compensation, but not more, probably. Alternatively, on the way 11.Na3!! Nxa2?! (Black has a Bishop and two pawns up this moment) White plays 12.Nb5!! with a very strong attack. After 11.Na3!! the best response 11…d5! 12.cxd6 Qxd6 13.Nb5 Qd3 14.Qc5! Ne2+ 15.Kh1 Qd7! doesn’t lead to enough good defence: after 16.Rae1 White attacks and stands better.
That is why 7.Bxf7+! isn’t a true pseudogambit, in fact. But what is this 7th move? Due to the gambit 11.Na3!! and due to some White’s gambits after 7…Kf8 (please, look at my Part 1 of this research), it is right to say that 7.Bxf7+! is, according to my new term, a “protogambit” - a protosacrifice which is a source of several winning gambits.
Once again, the Jerome gambit (JG) isn’t 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ only, it is also a large family of deferred (not of relative) systems with Bxf7+ which are the parts of JG. And the above part of JG is, probably, the strongest and the most important for practice: the probability of Black’s move 6…Nxf2 in practice is enough high.
Thus, my previous research and this my research are a start of the golden era of JG in chess opening theory and practice.
Contact the author: istinayubukayev@yandex.ru
© 2023 Yury V. Bukayev (Copyright © Bukayev Yury Vyacheslavovich 2023). All rights reserved.
[A legal using of this investigation with a reference to it is permitted
and doesn’t require author’s consent.]
