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French Defense · As Black · updated October 2026

Play the French like Matthias Bluebaum

A French repertoire built from 449 of Matthias Bluebaum's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Matthias Bluebaum chose most often. Where Matthias Bluebaum 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 Matthias Bluebaum or Chess.com.

  • Matthias Bluebaum was #40 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,207) and scored 71% against opponents averaging 2,967 in these games.
  • You play Matthias Bluebaum's own move in 40 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#40

Chess.com

Rating

3,207

Games

449

in this opening

Score

71%

in these games

Opponents

2,967

average rating

More about Matthias Bluebaum

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 12 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 7% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Na3 Bd7 7.Nc2 Qa5

  2. Line 2 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Bd3 cxd4 7.cxd4 Nf5

  3. Line 3 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 d5

  4. Line 4 · 5% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 dxe4 5.Nxe4 Be7 6.Nxf6+ Bxf6 7.Bxf6 Qxf6 8.Nf3 O-O

  5. Line 5 · 4% at top level

    2.Qe2 Nc6 3.Nf3 e5

  6. Line 6 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 Rb8 8.Qd2 Qa5 9.Be2 b5

  7. Line 7 · 4% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 dxe4 5.Nxe4 Be7 6.Bxf6 Bxf6 7.Nf3 Nd7 8.Bd3 c5

  8. Line 8 · 3% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.Bd3 c5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Ne2 cxd4 8.cxd4 f6 9.exf6 Nxf6 10.O-O Bd6

  9. Line 9 · 3% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Bd3 Nb4

  10. Line 10 · 3% at top level

    2.d3 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6

  11. Line 11 · 3% at top level

    2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.Bd3 c5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Ne2 cxd4 8.cxd4 f6 9.exf6 Nxf6 10.Nf3 Bd6

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Matthias Bluebaum's main line in the French, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Na3 Bd7 7.Nc2 Qa5.

  1. 2.d4 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 2.d4. At top level, this comes up about 82% of the time.
  2. 2…d5 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 2…d5 in 370 games, scoring 70%.
  3. 3.e5 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 3.e5. At top level, this comes up about 17% of the time.
  4. 3…c5 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 3…c5 in 76 games, scoring 75%.
  5. 4.c3 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 4.c3. At top level, this comes up about 17% of the time.
  6. 4…Nc6 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 4…Nc6 in 75 games, scoring 75%.
  7. 5.Nf3 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 5.Nf3.
  8. 5…Nge7 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 5…Nge7 in 75 games, scoring 75%.
  9. 6.Na3 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 6.Na3. At top level, this comes up about 9% of the time.
  10. 6…Bd7 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 6…Bd7 in 38 games, scoring 78%.
  11. 7.Nc2 Reply · Matthias Bluebaum's games A common reply here is 7.Nc2. At top level, this comes up about 7% of the time.
  12. 7…Qa5 Your move · Matthias Bluebaum's games Matthias Bluebaum played 7…Qa5 in 29 games, scoring 76%.

Questions about this course

How does Matthias Bluebaum play the French?
After 1.e4 e6, Matthias Bluebaum's most common line is 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Na3 Bd7 7.Nc2 Qa5. At top level it comes up about 7% of the time.
Is this Matthias Bluebaum's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Matthias Bluebaum's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this French course based on?
449 of Matthias Bluebaum's Chess.com blitz games in the French Defense as Black, against opponents with an average rating of 2,967. Matthias Bluebaum scored 71% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
11 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 Matthias Bluebaum?
GM Matthias Bluebaum was ranked number 40 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,207 when this course was built.