1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Nxf7 *
The Fried Liver attack is a variation of the Italian Game opening playing with the White pieces. This opening is a good one for beginner Chess players to play as it follows a very natural opening sequence while also developing positions that allow for interesting attacking positions to occur. If you’re still playing something like the Scholar’s mate, I know it’s fun to play, but swap it out and try the the Fried Liver.
Main Line
Here’s the main line sequence of the Fried Liver Attack.
When White captures the pawn with 6… Nxf7 Black needs to be very cautious on how to respond. Moving the King to capture the Knight typically creates a very vulnerable position for Black as the King becomes exposed and also loses the right to castling.
Example
The game below is a good example of the Fried Liver Attack in action.
The position starts to turn into chaos for Black when Black captures Whites Knight on 6… Kxf7.
Even if Black was able to prevent the checkmate, White would still be up two pawns and Black’s King would be running to safety for the rest of the game.
There is a variation after 5. Nxf7 (!) Bxf2! called the Traxler Counter Gambit. The Traxler isn’t recommended for beginners or even intermediate Chess players. The line requires knowledge of lot of theory and memorization of many long complex variations.
I hope this article on the Fried Liver Attack opening helped you. If you like tutorials on Chess Openings like this, you also be interested in reading the guide on the London System and the Ruy Lopez openings.