The Petroff Defence is one of Black's most reliable answers to 1.e4. After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 Black does not defend the e5 pawn but attacks e4 symmetrically in return. The main branches are gathered here: the Classical Attack, the Cochrane Gambit, the famous Nc6+ trap and the 3.d4 variation. At each branching point, choose which line to play.
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The starting position. Choose your moves - at a branching point several continuations are available.
The opening is named after Alexander Petrov, the first great Russian master, who analysed it in the nineteenth century. With 2...Nf6 Black, instead of defending the e5 pawn, attacks the e4 pawn in turn - a symmetrical counter-strike.
The main idea is reliability and symmetry. By trading the central pawns Black equalises quickly and gets a solid position with no weaknesses. That is why the Petroff is popular at the very highest level as a sturdy weapon with Black.
An important subtlety: 3.Nxe5 Nxe4 does not work straight away - Black has to chase the knight away with 3...d6 first, or he walks into an awkward pin on the e-file.
After 2...Nf6 White usually plays 3.Nxe5, taking the pawn. The correct reply is 3...d6, and only then 4...Nxe4. The main battle unfolds in the Classical Attack 5.d4, where White takes the centre.
There are sharp routes too: the Cochrane Gambit 4.Nxf7!? - a brazen knight sacrifice for two pawns and a stranded king. And the hasty 3...Nxe4 walks into the famous trap: 4.Qe2 Nf6?? 5.Nc6+ with a discovered check and the loss of the queen.
White has two main routes against the Petroff. The first is the Classical Attack: 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4. White takes the centre, develops the bishop to d3, castles and prepares the c4 break, gradually dislodging the e4 knight. The result is a small but durable space advantage with no risk at all.
The second route is 3.d4: White strikes in the centre at once. After 3...exd4 4.e5 Ne4 5.Qxd4 the white queen takes a strong central post, the play is livelier than in the classical lines, and the opponent runs out of memorised theory sooner.
Attacking players will like the Cochrane Gambit 4.Nxf7!? - a knight sacrifice for two pawns and a king stuck in the centre. Objectively Black is fine, but defending over the board is unpleasant: one inaccuracy and White's attack becomes decisive.
The main rule for Black is not to rush the capture on e4. After 3.Nxe5, chase the knight away first with 3...d6 and only then take the pawn: 4.Nf3 Nxe4. The immediate 3...Nxe4?! sets awkward problems after 4.Qe2, and 4...Nf6?? already loses the queen to 5.Nc6+.
From there, follow the classical models: 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Nc6 7.0-0 Be7 - the pieces are developed, the king is safe, and White has only the symbolic advantage of the first move. It is exactly this reliability that made Kasparov, Kramnik and Carlsen play the Petroff.
Its reputation as an opening without weaknesses has made the Petroff a favourite weapon of champions whenever reliability with Black is enough. Vladimir Kramnik used it for years as a safe answer to 1.e4, and many elite grandmasters followed him in taking it into their repertoires.
The best-known example is the 2018 world championship match between Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana. Caruana answered every 1.e4 with the Petroff, and those games became a model of the modern treatment. In game six an apparently drawish position turned into a hard struggle in which Carlsen had to give up a piece for two pawns and scramble for a draw.
The practical conclusion is simple: the Petroff is not a drawing machine but a full-blooded defence in which Black deliberately opts for a solid position and waits for inaccuracies. That is exactly why it is chosen when a dependable result with Black against a strong player matters.
The typical set-ups this opening leads to - learn them, and the plan follows by itself.
White's main Petroff position: 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Bd6 7.0-0 0-0 8.c4. White undermines the e4 knight's support and presses on the centre - a small but lasting edge.
The tempting 3...Nxe4?! leaves the e5 knight in play and makes the e-file dangerous. Then 4.Qe2 pins Black down, and one inaccuracy costs the queen - this is exactly where the famous Nc6+ trap comes from.
4.Nxf7!? - White gives up a knight for two pawns and takes away Black's right to castle. Objectively Black is a piece up, but in practice, especially in blitz, playing under fire is no easy matter.
3...Nc6!? 4.Nxc6 dxc6 5.d3 Bc5 - the typical Stafford Gambit picture for Black: a pawn given up in return for fast development, open lines and a pile of traps for a careless White.
These are the main named variations. Click any one of them and it loads straight onto the board above, where you can play it out move by move. The trainer itself holds more lines than this: it also covers main-line continuations and transpositions that have no name of their own.
What to avoid, and what catches an unprepared opponent.
The best-known trap in the Petroff, and it is White who scores from it. Black rushes 3...Nxe4 without chasing the knight away with 3...d6. After 4.Qe2 the position is already awkward, and the natural retreat 4...Nf6?? loses on the spot: 5.Nc6+ - a discovered check down the e-file that attacks the queen at the same time. The only defence is 4...Qe7.
The general rule for Black in this opening: 3...d6 first, and only then the capture. While White's knight sits on e5, the e-file is raked by the queen and any inaccuracy costs material. That also explains why 3...d6 is the only move played en masse at the top level.
The most trap-laden route for Black: instead of 3...d6 a pawn is given up for a quick attack on the open lines. Objectively White keeps the extra pawn and an edge, but in blitz and rapid the gambit is very dangerous - there are plenty of lines where White goes wrong.
The continuation of the gambit and the most spectacular trap available to Black in the whole Petroff: White takes the queen and is mated on move eight. It is worth understanding that the mate needs two mistakes in a row - 6.Bg5? and above all the greedy 7.Bxd8??. The careful 6.Be2 defuses everything.
Not a trap but a deliberate sacrifice: for the knight White gets two pawns and a black king that cannot castle. Only go in for it if you are ready to play for the attack - with precise defence Black is a piece up with the better chances.
Traps in other openings - the 12 most common opening traps.
The most reliable is the Classical Attack: 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4, followed by Bd3, 0-0 and c4. White gets a lasting space advantage. Sharper are 3.d4 with early queen activity, and the Cochrane Gambit 4.Nxf7!?, sacrificing a knight for the initiative.
Black trades the central pawns at once and reaches a symmetrical position with no weaknesses. White is left with only the minimal advantage of the first move, so equalising is easier here than in many other openings.
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 you cannot rush 3...Nxe4: after 4.Qe2 the move 4...Nf6?? loses to 5.Nc6+ - a discovered check that wins Black's queen. You have to play 3...d6 first.
It is the knight sacrifice 4.Nxf7!? after 3.Nxe5 d6. White gives up a piece for two pawns and the chance to chase the black king stuck in the centre. White has the initiative and the psychological pressure, though theoretically Black is fine.
It is aimed at reliability, which is why it is popular when a solid result is needed. But the sharp lines exist too - the Cochrane Gambit, the Classical Attack with 5.d4 and the tactical traps make the play richer than it looks.
Realistically it is small and positional rather than crushing: the Petroff is rightly considered one of the most solid answers to 1.e4. The classical tabiya after 8.c4 gives White a little more space and pressure on the centre. Do not count on an opening rout - the fight usually carries into the middlegame and the endgame.
The main one is the Stafford Gambit: 3.Nxe5 Nc6!? 4.Nxc6 dxc6, with Black sacrificing a pawn for a quick attack. The most spectacular trap inside it is the Stafford Mate: 5.d3 Bc5 6.Bg5? Nxe4! 7.Bxd8?? Bxf2+ 8.Ke2 Bg4#, where White takes the queen and is mated on move eight. It only works against careless play - the quiet 6.Be2 defuses everything, so the gambit should not be relied on in serious games.
Want the tactics that decide these positions? Start with the 12 most common opening traps and tactics for beginners. If you are just starting out, read the rules of chess and how to set up the board.
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