Giuoco Piano

Giuoco Piano

The Giuoco Piano is said to be the oldest opening recorded in chess. Instead of developing the bishop to b5, white instead attacks the center and aims at the weak f7 square. After black responds bishop to c5 you see the tension building up in the center of the board...
White eventually plans to bring his pawn to d4 and black plans to bring his pawn to d5. As you can tell from the setup, there are no attacks from the outside but instead everything runs through the middle.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. Be3 Bb6 6. Nc3 d6
7. h3 Na5 8. Bb3 Nxb3 9. axb3 Be6 10. Nb5 Bxe3 11. fxe3 c6
12. Nc3 Qc7 13. g4 a6 14. d4 O-O-O 15. d5 Bd7 16. g5 Ne8
17. Nd2 c5 18. Nc4 h6 19. Qh5 Rf8 20. gxh6 Rh8 21. hxg7 Rxh5
22. g8=Q Rxh3 23. Rxh3 Bxh3 24. Nb5 Qe7 25. Qh7 Bg4 26. Na7+
Kb8 27. Rxa6 Nc7 28. Ra5 Qf6 29. Qh1 Rh8 30. Qf1 Bf3 31. Nb6
Qh4+ 32. Kd2 Qg4 33. Qxf3 Qxf3 34. Nd7+ Ka8 35. Nc6+ Na6
36. Nb6# 1-0

Jose Raul Capablanca vs NN
New York 1918

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. O-O O-O 6. d3 d6
7. Bg5 Bg4 8. Nd5 Nd4 9. Qd2 Qd7 10. Bxf6 Bxf3 11. Ne7+ Kh8
12. Bxg7+ Kxg7 13. Qg5+ Kh8 14. Qf6# 1-0

Wilhelm Steinitz vs Curt von Bardeleben
Hastings (England) 1895
Italian Game: Classical Variation
[Result 1-0]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d4 exd4 6. cxd4
Bb4+ 7. Nc3 d5 8. exd5 Nxd5 9. O-O Be6 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Bxd5
Bxd5 12. Nxd5 Qxd5 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Re1 f6 15. Qe2 Qd7
16. Rac1 c6 17. d5 cxd5 18. Nd4 Kf7 19. Ne6 Rhc8 20. Qg4 g6
21. Ng5+ Ke8 22. Rxe7+ Kf8 23. Rf7+ Kg8 24. Rg7+ Kh8 25. Rxh7+
{And black resigned at this point. As Steinitz demonstrated
immediately afterward, there is a mate in ten moves which can
only be averted by ruinous loss of material; analysis follows:
...Kh8 25. Rxh7+ Kg8 26. Rg7+ Kh8 27. Qh4+ Kxg7 28. Qh7+ Kf8
29. Qh8+ Ke7 30. Qg7+ Ke8 31. Qg8+ Ke7 32. Qf7+ Kd8 33. Qf8+
Qe8 34. Nf7+ Kd7 35. Qd6#} 1-0

Aron Nimzowitsch vs Jose Raul Capablanca
Riga 1913
Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo. Canal Variation
[Result 0-1]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. d3 d6
6. Bg5 Be6 7. Bb5 h6 8. Bh4 Bb4 9. d4 Bd7 10. O-O Bxc3 11. bxc3 g5 12. Bg3 Nxe4 13. Bxc6 Bxc6 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Bxe5 Qxd1 16. Raxd1 f6 17. Bd4 Kf7 18. Nd2 Rhe8 19. f3 Nxd2 20. Rxd2
Rad8 21. g4 Bb5 22. Rb1 Ba6 23. Rbd1 Re2 24. Rxe2 Bxe2 25. Re1 Bxf3
26. Rf1 26. c5 27. Bxf6 Rd1 28. Be5 Rxf1+ 29. Kxf1 Bxg4 30. a4 Ke6
31. Bb8 a5 $1 32. Ke1 Kd5 33. Kd2 Bd7 34. Bc7 Kc6
35. Bd8 b6 36. c4 Kb7 37. Kc3 Bxa4 38. Kb2 Bd7 39. Kb3
Be6 40. Kc3 a4 41. Kd3 Kc6 42. Kc3 g4 43. Bh4 h5 44. Bg3 a3
45. Kb3 Bxc4+ 46. Kxa3 b5 47. c3 Kd5
48. Bf2 Be2 49. Kb3 Bd1+ 50. Kb2 Kc4 51. Kc1 Bf3 52. Kd2 b4 53. cxb4 cxb4
54. Bh4 Be4 55. Bf6 Bg6 56. Bh4 b3 57. Bf6 h4 58. Ke3 g3
59. hxg3 h3 60. Kf2 Bf5 61. g4 Bxg4 62. Kg3 Kd3 63. Kh2 Kc2 64. Kg3 b2 {White resigns.} 0-1

Wilhelm Hanstein vs Baron Tassilo Heydebrand und der Lasa
Berlin 1841
Italian Game: Giuoco Pianissimo
[Result 0-1]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d3 d6 5.h3 Nf6 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bh4
Qe7 8.a3 Be6 9.Bb5 O-O-O 10.Bxc6 bxc6 11.b4 Bb6 12.c4 g5
13.Bg3 Nh5 14.Bh2 Nf4 15.Bxf4 exf4 16.Nbd2 f5 17.Qe2 Qg7
18.Rb1 Rhe8 19.Kd1 fxe4 20.dxe4 d5 21.c5 dxe4 22.Qa6+ Kb8
23.cxb6 cxb6 24.Re1 exf3 25.gxf3 Qc3 26.Re2 Bc4 0-1

Hyacinthe Henri Boncourt vs Pierre Charles Fournier de Saint Amant
Paris 1837
Italian Game: Classical Variation. Giuoco Pianissimo (C50)
[Result 0-1]

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 Bc5 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. c3 Bb6 6. O-O O-O
7. Bg5 d6 8. b4 Be6 9. Nbd2 h6 10. Bh4 Kh7 11. a4 a6 12. Kh1
Rg8 13. Qc2 g5 14. Bg3 h5 15. h3 h4 16. Bh2 Nh5 17. d4 g4
18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. hxg4 Rxg4 20. dxe5 dxe5 21. Nc4 Ng3+
22. fxg3 hxg3 23. Rad1 Qe7 24. b5 Rh4 25. Nxb6 Rxh2+ 26. Kg1
Qc5+ 27. Rf2 cxb6 28. Nxh2 axb5 29. axb5 Rf8 30. Nf3 Na5
31. Qe2 Nc4 32. Ng5+ Kg6 33. Nf3 Rf4 34. Rd3 gxf2+ 35. Qxf2
Qxf2+ 36. Kxf2 Rxe4 37. Rd7 Rf4 38. Rxb7 e4 39. Kg3 exf3 0-1

Pierre Charles Fournier de Saint Amant vs John William Schulten
Paris 1842
Chess opening-Italian Game: Italian Variation (C50)
[Result 1-0]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.O-O d6 5.c3 Be6 6.Bxe6 fxe6
7.Qb3 Qd7 8.Ng5 Nd8 9.d3 h6 10.Nf3 g5 11.d4 exd4 12.cxd4 Bb6
13.Be3 Nf6 14.Nc3 Ng4 15.Rad1 Nc6 16.d5 Na5 17.dxe6 Qc6 18.Qb4
Nxe3 19.fxe3 Bxe3+ 20.Kh1 Bb6 21.Nd5 Qc5 22.Qxc5 dxc5 23.Ne5
O-O-O 24.Nf7 Rde8 25.Nf6 Nc6 26.Nxh8 Rxh8 27.Nd7 Nd4 28.Nf8
Kd8 29.e7+ Ke8 30.Ng6 1-0