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Italian Game · As Black · updated October 2026

Play against the Italian Game like Fabiano Caruana

A repertoire against the Italian Game built from 36 of Fabiano Caruana's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Fabiano Caruana chose most often. Where Fabiano Caruana 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 Fabiano Caruana or Chess.com.

  • Fabiano Caruana was #14 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,271) and scored 75% against opponents averaging 3,038 in these games.
  • You play Fabiano Caruana's own move in 9 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#14

Chess.com

Rating

3,271

Games

36

in this opening

Score

75%

in these games

Opponents

3,038

average rating

More about Fabiano Caruana

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 9 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 12% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6

  2. Line 2 · 8% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 Nd5 9.Nf3 Bd6 10.O-O O-O 11.Re1 f5 12.Nxe5 Qf6 13.Nf3 g5 14.c4 Nf4 15.Bf1 g4 16.d4 gxf3

  3. Line 3 · 8% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.Nc3 d6 6.a3 O-O 7.Be3 Be6

  4. Line 4 · 8% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.Nc3 d6 6.a3 O-O 7.h3 Be6 8.Nd5 Nd4

  5. Line 5 · 8% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.Nc3 d6 6.a4 O-O

  6. Line 6 · 8% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.a4 O-O

  7. Line 7 · 7% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 Nd5 9.h4 h6 10.Qh5 Qf6 11.Ne4 Qe6

  8. Line 8 · 6% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3 Nd5 9.Nf3 Bd6 10.O-O O-O 11.Re1 f5 12.Nxe5 Qf6 13.Nf3 g5 14.Nc3 g4 15.Rb1 Nb4 16.Be2 Bb7

  9. Line 9 · 5% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Nc3 d6 7.a4 a5 8.h3 h6 9.Re1 Re8

  10. Line 10 · 5% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.O-O Nxe4 5.Qe2 d5 6.Bb5 Bd6 7.c4 Nf6 8.d4 e4

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

Fabiano Caruana'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.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6.

  1. 3…Nf6 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 3…Nf6 in 20 games, scoring 83%.
  2. 4.d3 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 4.d3. At top level, this comes up about 60% of the time.
  3. 4…Be7 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 4…Be7 in 8 games, scoring 75%.
  4. 5.O-O Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 5.O-O. At top level, this comes up about 30% of the time.
  5. 5…O-O Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 5…O-O in 4 games, scoring 63%.
  6. 6.Re1 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 6.Re1. At top level, this comes up about 15% of the time.
  7. 6…d6 Your move · Top-50 players Fabiano Caruana has too few games here, so this is the other top players' most played move.
  8. 7.a4 Reply · Top-50 players In the other top players' games, a common reply here is 7.a4. At top level, this comes up about 12% of the time.
  9. 7…Be6 Your move · Top-50 players Fabiano Caruana has too few games here, so this is the other top players' most played move.

Questions about this course

How does Fabiano Caruana play against the Italian Game?
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4, Fabiano Caruana's most common line is 3…Nf6 4.d3 Be7 5.O-O O-O 6.Re1 d6 7.a4 Be6. At top level it comes up about 12% of the time.
Is this Fabiano Caruana's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Fabiano Caruana's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Italian Game course based on?
36 of Fabiano Caruana's Chess.com blitz games in the Italian Game as Black, against opponents with an average rating of 3,038. Fabiano Caruana scored 75% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
10 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 Fabiano Caruana?
GM Fabiano Caruana was ranked number 14 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,271 when this course was built.