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Chad Lieberman

The Fried Liver Attack is one of the most interesting openings in chess theory. Surprisingly enough, it is most commonly played by young beginners. In the position after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 (more common these days is 5...Na5) 6.Nxf7!? Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6, white has sacrificed a piece for a pawn and an uncomfortable black king placement. While from this position some grandmasters recommend 8.d4! and others 8.Nc3, it is not disputed that white must develop quickly and attack the black king in order to prove compensation for the piece.

This week's featured game is actually an Evan's Gambit, but you can plainly see the resemblance between the attack white gets here and that which he obtains in the Fried Liver Attack.

Morphy develops his pieces very quickly, making sure to first establish his king's safety with 6.0-0 and only then proceed with his plans. Although the attack is somewhat ill-advised - that is, black would maintain the advantage after the hard-to-find 15...c5 - very few players defend as well as Fritz 7.

After black's 18...Re8, there is a mate-in-five. Notice how the black king strolls into the white territory and is finally executed with the subtle 22.Qg3, after which 23.Qh3# cannot be stopped. An enlightening attacking game!