Download PGN of October ’25 French games
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Advance Variation 5...Bd7 6 Be2 f6 7 0-0 fxe5 8 Nxe5 Nxe5 9 dxe5 Qc7 [C02]
After 3 e5 c5 4 c3 Nc6 5 Nf3, the sequence 5...Bd7 6 Be2 f6 is well covered in the Archives and has been especially popular in recent years. The main line is still 7 0-0 fxe5 8 Nxe5 Nxe5 9 dxe5 Qc7 10 Re1:
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In Fiorito, J - Heberla, B, Granada 2025, Black played 10...Ne7 (intending 11 a4 Nc6) 11 Bf1 Nf5 and achieved equality. I have included a fairly lengthy note about 10...0-0-0 11 a4 Qxe5 using three games from 2025 between very high-level grandmasters. To play that line for either side, you need to be well prepared; objectively the play appears to be balanced.
Instead of 10 Re1, the older 10 c4 is still unresolved (see the Archives), and 10 Bf4 is also challenging. Then Black should play 10...Ne7, which is fine, because after 10...0-0-0?! 11 a4! White has a good version of the Na3-b5 idea:
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Malinovsky, I - Webb, L, Liverpool 2025, Black continued 11...Ne7?! (too late; 11...Kb8) 12 Na3 c4, and here 13 b3! (or 13 b4!) would have been extremely strong. You can see that both sides need very concrete preparation in these lines.
Advance Variation 4 Nf3 cxd4 5 Bd3 Nc6 6 0-0 [C02]
A variation which has been around for years arises after 3 e5 c5 4 Nf3 cxd4 (or 4...Nc6 5 Bd3 cxd4) 5 Bd3 Nc6 6 0-0. This isn’t considered particularly dangerous, but can prove tricky. I’ve taken advantage of engines to look at the traditional line with 6...f6 7 Qe2 (I’ve also analysed the arguably better move 7 Bb5).
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Here Vasquez Schroeder, R - Papacek, S, Titled Tue 29th July 2025, continued with the normal 7...fxe5, which is what I and other have recommended for many years. The game went down normal paths until Black played too slowly and allowed White a nice positional advantage. What I think are really interesting moves in this line are 7...Qc7 and 7...Bc5, both of which give Black more winning chances than 7...fxe5 and have no serious drawbacks as far as I can tell.
Classical Steinitz Variation 5 f4 c5 6 Nf3 Nc6 7 Bd3 [C11]
Versus 3 Nc3, 3...Nf6 remains the top choice of high-rated players, and 4 e5 Nfd7 5 f4 c5 6 Nf3 Nc6 is still being disputed on a regular basis. Some games from last month’s Sinquefield Cup are interesting. In Aronian, L - Sevian, S, Saint Louis 2025, White played the bold and little-known 7 Bd3!?:
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This sacrifices a pawn for the sake of development. Existing practice and theory is fairly unrevealing, so I’ve given a few suggestions. The game itself was well-played and interesting, but in general, this doesn’t seem like a line that will attract many players as White.
Steinitz 5 f4 c5 6 Nf3 Nc6 7 Be3 cxd4 8 Nxd4 Qb6 9 Qd2 Qxb2 10 Rb1 Qa3 11 Bb5 [C11]
In the same tournament last month, Aronian was Black in two other games with the Steinitz involving the widely played and analysed 7 Be3 cxd4 8 Nxd4 Qb6 9 Qd2 Qxb2 10 Rb1 Qa3 11 Bb5 Nxd4 12 Bxd4 a6 13 Bxd7+ Bxd7 14 Rb3 Qe7 15 Rxb7. We’ve seen this position several times, and it is promoted in a number of recommended Black repertoires. Black has three main moves, all of which are held to equalize with accurate play, but all of which require very serious preparation (the same goes for White). We’ve covered this various times in the Archives, but the specifics of this middlegame are delicate and the line continues to evolve with practice. Vachier Lagrave, M - Aronian, L, Saint Louis 2025, continued 15...Qd8 16 0-0 Qc8 17 Rb3:
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Here Black played 17...Qc4, but ran into many difficulties after 18 Nd1! . 17...Bc5 hasn’t scored well but should be fine, as explained in the notes.
In Caruana, F - Aronian, L, Saint Louis 2025, Black played 15...Rc8 16 0-0 Qc8, another sequence which has proven reliable over the years:
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White has tried many moves in hundreds of games here; I’ve tried to summarize all the important ones in the notes. The game continuation 17 Qf2 Rxc3 18 Bxc3 Qc8 19 Rb3 Ba4 has been tested in dozens of games, all of them drawn. Caruana tried a new move, but it wasn’t even challenging, so both sides should look at the notes to White’s 17th if they want to keep up with this line.
Winawer 5 Bd2 Ne7 6 Nb5 Bxd2+ 7 Qxd2 0-0 8 f4 [C17]
Recently I looked at 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e5 c5 5 Bd2 Ne7 6 a3 Bxc3 7 Bxc3 b6, and in particular with White playing the relatively fresh idea 8 h4.
White also still plays the old main line with 6 Nb5 Bxd2+ 7 Qxd2 0-0 8 f4:
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Here Black has various solutions. In Dziewonski, D - Cherniack, A, Olomouc 2025, Black played 8...a6 (I have a lengthy note on the less-used but sound option 8...Bd7) 9 Nd6 cxd4 10 Nf3 Nc6 11 Bd3 f6 12 0-0, a traditional main line. Here I’ve briefly updated the hyper-tactical variation 12...fxe5 13 fxe5 Rxf3!, which can easily end in a draw. The game went 12...Bd7, after which White has at least four moves of interest and I’ve looked at each one.
Winawer Armenian Variation 6 b4 cxd4 7 Nb5 Bc7 8 f4 Bd7 [C18]
After 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e5 c5 5 a3, we have covered 5...Ba5 - the Armenian Variation - often over the years. Nevertheless, although 5...Ba5 has gone through a few periods of considerable popularity, it has for the most part it been a sort of eccentric sideline. Recently, we see some players beginning to experiment with the Armenian, notably Aronian, so I’ll begin to update a few lines using recent lower-level games to look at the state of theory. An important main line goes 6 b4 cxd4 7 Nb5 Bc7 8 f4 Bd7, and for some time 9 Nf3 was considered more effective than 9 Nxc7+ Qxc7 10 Nf3, but recently White has returned to the latter sequence.
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In Deepak, L - Ivanov, M, Toronto 2025, Black tried 10...Nh6!?, which is logical, since the knight can target e3 by going to either f5 or g4. The game was complex and eventful, but White would probably have gotten an edge out of the opening with accurate play.
Osvald, D - Bjolek, J, Skalica 2025, tested the thematic idea 10...Ba4:
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11 Bd3 followed (11 Ra2 is an interesting option), with 11...Ne7 12 0-0 a6 13 Bb2 Nbc6 giving Black equal chances (...Bb5 is coming). For now, the 7 Nb5 line looks satisfactory for Black, but still interesting for both players.
Till next month, John
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