Italian Game · As Black · updated November 2026
Play against the Italian Game like Daniil Dubov
A repertoire against the Italian Game built from 40 of Daniil Dubov's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Daniil Dubov chose most often. Where Daniil Dubov has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by Daniil Dubov or Chess.com.
- Daniil Dubov was #28 in Chess.com blitz in November 2026 (3,242) and scored 64% against opponents averaging 3,076 in these games.
- You play Daniil Dubov's own move in 8 of 40 positions.
- The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.
Train lines
Learn a new line move by move. Lines due for review go to your daily review first.
Free · first 5 lines need no account
Blitz rank
#28
Chess.com
Rating
3,242
as of 9 Nov 2026
Games
40
in this opening
Score
64%
in these games
Opponents
3,076
average rating
Based on 40 games, Apr–Oct 2026
Lines to learn
- Next
Line 1 · 9% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nc3 d6 7.a4 Na5 8.Ba2 c5
- New
Line 2 · 6% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.Nbd2 d6
- New
Line 3 · 6% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.Nc3 O-O 6.a4 d6 7.O-O Na5
- New
Line 4 · 6% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.a4 O-O
- New
Line 5 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nc3 d6 7.a3 h6 8.h3 a5
- New
Line 6 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6 8.Bxe6 fxe6
- New
Line 7 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6 8.Nc3 Bxc4 9.dxc4 a5 10.h3 Nd7
- New
Line 8 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6 8.a5 Bxc4 9.dxc4 b6
- New
Line 9 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.e5 d5 6.Bb5 Nd7 7.O-O Be7 8.Bxc6 bxc6
- New
Line 10 · 4% at top level
3…Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 Nd5
- New
Line 11 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Bb3 d6 7.c3 h6 8.Re1 Nh7
- New
Line 12 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Bb3 d6 7.c3 h6 8.h3 Be6
- New
Line 13 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nbd2 d6
- New
Line 14 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.Nc3 Na5
- New
Line 15 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a3 Be6
- New
Line 16 · 3% at top level
3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6 8.Nbd2 Bxc4 9.Nxc4 h6 10.h3 Re8
Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.
Daniil Dubov's main line against the Italian Game, move by move
The most common line at top level: 3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nc3 d6 7.a4 Na5. From there the course continues with 8.Ba2 c5.
- 3…Nf6 Your move · Daniil Dubov's games Daniil Dubov played 3…Nf6 in 40 games, scoring 64%.
- 4.d3 Reply · Daniil Dubov's games A common reply here is 4.d3. At top level, this comes up about 83% of the time.
- 4…Be7 Your move · Daniil Dubov's games Daniil Dubov played 4…Be7 in 28 games, scoring 59%.
- 5.O-O Reply · Daniil Dubov's games A common reply here is 5.O-O. At top level, this comes up about 56% of the time.
- 5…O-O Your move · Daniil Dubov's games Daniil Dubov played 5…O-O in 18 games, scoring 50%.
- 6.Nc3 Reply · Daniil Dubov's games A common reply here is 6.Nc3. At top level, this comes up about 16% of the time.
- 6…d6 Your move · Daniil Dubov's games Daniil Dubov played 6…d6 in 5 games, scoring 40%.
- 7.a4 Reply · Daniil Dubov's games A common reply here is 7.a4. At top level, this comes up about 9% of the time.
- 7…Na5 Your move · Daniil Dubov's games Daniil Dubov played 7…Na5 in 2 games, scoring 50%.
- 8.Ba2 Reply · Most played by top-50 players In the other top players' games, a common reply here is 8.Ba2.
- 8…c5 Your move · Stockfish's pick The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.
Questions about this course
- How does Daniil Dubov play against the Italian Game?
- After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4, Daniil Dubov's most common line is 3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nc3 d6 7.a4 Na5. At top level it comes up about 9% of the time. From there the course continues with 8.Ba2 c5.
- Is this Daniil Dubov's course?
- No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Daniil Dubov's public Chess.com blitz games.
- What is this Italian Game course based on?
- 40 of Daniil Dubov's Chess.com blitz games in the Italian Game as Black, against opponents with an average rating of 3,076. Daniil Dubov scored 64% in them.
- How many lines does the course have?
- 16 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
- Who is Daniil Dubov?
- GM Daniil Dubov was ranked number 28 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,242 when this course was built.