Watch
Step 1 · The bluff
White to move
r1bqk2r/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 4 6Try to win the pawn at once: Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5. Black answers …Qd4!, forking the knight and the e4 pawn. Nf3 saves the knight and …Qxe4 takes the pawn back. Nothing was won: the e5 pawn cannot be taken while e4 hangs.
The line: 6.Ba4xc6 d7xc6 7.Nf3xe5 Qd8-d4 8.Ne5-f3 Qd4xe4
Decide
Step 2 · Make it real
White to move
r1bqk2r/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 4 6Same position, before the capture.
Which move makes the Bxc6 and Nxe5 idea a real threat?
Quick check
- Rook to e1
- Knight to c3
- Take on c6 now
Show the correct answer
Correct answer: Rook to e1 — Re1. The rook guards e4 from behind, so after Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5 the fork …Qd4 wins nothing: Nf3, and e4 is guarded. A developing move that turns a bluff into a threat.
- Knight to c3 — Nc3 also guards e4, but it blocks the c-pawn your bishop will need after …b5 and …Na5. Playable, but the rook does the job without the cost.
- Take on c6 now — Bxc6 now is the bluff you just saw: …dxc6 Nxe5 Qd4 and the pawn comes straight back.
Your move
Step 3 · Guard e4
White to move
r1bqk2r/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 4 6Make the threat real.
Hint: Guard e4 with a developing move before you try to cash the pressure on e5.
The move: 6.Rf1-e1
6.Re1. e4 is guarded, the rook is developed, and Bxc6 followed by Nxe5 now wins a pawn unless Black reacts. That is the Spanish tension.
Also good here
6.d2-d3— Also fine: the pawn guards e4; the threat is real too, and the rook can come later.
Why not another move?
6.Ba4xc6— Playable, but it wins nothing: …dxc6 Nxe5 Qd4! and the pawn comes back with the knight chased. What follows:6…d7xc6 7.Nf3xe5 Qd8-d46.Nb1-c3— Playable, but the knight blocks the c-pawn; after …b5 Bb3 Na5 your bishop has no c2. The rook guards e4 for free.6.d2-d4— …exd4 and you must recapture with the knight; the e4 pawn is loose and the tension is gone. d4 needs c3 behind it.6.Qd1-e2— Playable, but the queen is a clumsy guard for e4: it stands on the file the rook wants, and the rook does the job for free.
Your move
Step 4 · Your turn as Black
Black to move
r1bqk2r/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQR1K1 b kq - 5 6Now you are Black. The threat is real: Bxc6 and Nxe5 would win a pawn. Deal with it before you castle.
Hint: Bxc6 then Nxe5 is threatened. Kick the bishop, or guard e5.
The move: 6…b7-b5
6…b5. The bishop is kicked back to b3, so it can never take on c6 in time. Now …d6 and …O-O follow, and the Spanish main line is on the board.
Also good here
6…d7-d6— Also fine: …d6 guards e5 directly with a pawn. Solid.
Why not another move?
6…O-O— …O-O? Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5 and this time the pawn is gone for good: with the rook on e1, …Qd4 Nf3 Qxe4 runs into Rxe4. What follows:7.Ba4xc6 d7xc6 8.Nf3xe56…Nf6xe4— …Nxe4?? Rxe4: the rook was guarding it. A knight for a pawn. What follows:7.Re1xe46…Be7-c5— The bishop moves again while the threat stands: Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5 still comes.6…Nc6-d4— …Nd4? Nxe5 and the pawn falls with the knight offside.
Your move
Step 5 · Cash the threat
White to move
r1bq1rk1/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQR1K1 w - - 6 7Black castled instead. The threat was real, so carry it out. Order matters.
Hint: The pawn on e5 is defended once, by the knight on c6. Remove the defender first.
The move: 7.Ba4xc6
7.Bxc6 dxc6 8.Nxe5. A clean pawn: with e4 guarded by the rook, …Qd4 Nf3 Qxe4?? runs into Rxe4.
Why not another move?
7.Nf3xe5— …Nxe5 and you are simply a knight down: the bishop on a4 had not yet taken on c6. Trade first, then take. What follows:7…Nc6xe57.c2-c3— Playable, but you missed the free pawn: Bxc6 first, then Nxe5.7.Ba4-b3— Playable, but the bishop retreats from a square where it was about to win a pawn: Bxc6 first.7.d2-d4— …Nxd4 Nxd4 exd4 and you have traded the tension away instead of winning the pawn.
Watch
Step 6 · The fork that fails
Black to move
r1bq1rk1/1pp1bppp/p1p2n2/4N3/4P3/8/PPPP1PPP/RNBQR1K1 b - - 0 8Black tries the old fork: …Qd4. Nf3, and …Qxe4?? runs into Rxe4: the rook was waiting. With e4 guarded, the fork was a bluff, and White keeps the pawn.
The line: 8…Qd8-d4 9.Ne5-f3 Qd4xe4 10.Re1xe4
Decide
Step 7 · Why now?
White to move
r1bq1rk1/1pppbppp/p1n2n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQR1K1 w - - 6 7Back to the moment before the capture.
Why does the same capture win a pawn now?
Quick check
- Because Re1 guards e4
- Because Black’s king has castled
- Because the bishop on e7 blocks the queen
Show the correct answer
Correct answer: Because Re1 guards e4 — Yes. After Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5 Qd4 Nf3 the queen cannot take on e4: Rxe4. The fork that saved the pawn before hits nothing now.
- Because Black’s king has castled — The castled king is not the reason. The pawn is won by removing its defender, and that works because e4 is safe.
- Because the bishop on e7 blocks the queen — The bishop on e7 does not block the d-file; …Qd4 still comes. It just no longer works.
On your own
Step 8 · On your own
White to move
r1bqk2r/1pp1bppp/p1np1n2/4p3/B3P3/3P1N2/PPP2PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 0 7White played d3 before Black’s …d6. The e4 pawn is already guarded by a pawn, and your rook is still on f1. Choose White’s move.
Hint: e4 is guarded by the d3 pawn. What does the bishop need before …b5 and …Na5?
The move: 7.c2-c3
7.c3. With e4 already safe, the rook has no job to hurry to. The bishop needs c2 before …Na5 comes, and c3 gives it that square while preparing d4.
Also good here
7.c2-c4— Also fine: c4 grabs space and takes b5 away from Black.7.a2-a3— Also fine: a3 gives the bishop a2 and keeps b4 from the knight.
Why not another move?
7.Rf1-e1— Playable, but the rook was the hero last time only because e4 hung. Here …b5 Bb3 Na5 and the bishop pair goes, because c2 is not available.7.Nb1-c3— The knight blocks the c-pawn: …b5 Bb3 Na5 again and the bishop has nowhere to go.7.Ba4xc6— Giving up the Spanish bishop for nothing: …bxc6 and Black is happy.7.Bc1-d2— Playable, but passive; the bishop needs c2, not the queen’s square.
A quick refresher
In the app this position is not part of the lesson itself: it comes back later, as a review, to check that the idea stuck.
Your move
e4 not yet guarded
White to move
r1bqkb1r/1pp2ppp/p1np1n2/4p3/B3P3/5N2/PPPP1PPP/RNBQ1RK1 w kq - 0 6Black played …d6 instead of …Be7. e4 is not yet guarded. Your move.
Hint: Guard e4 with development, or prepare the centre with c3.
The move: 6.Rf1-e1 or 6.c2-c3
Both work: Re1 guards e4 and renews the threat on e5; c3 prepares d4 and gives the bishop c2. The Spanish spends its sixth move on one of these almost every time.
Also good here
6.Qd1-e2— Also fine: the queen guards e4 and eyes b5; the rook is freed for d1 later.
Why not another move?
6.Ba4xc6— Playable, but giving up the Spanish bishop for nothing is rarely the plan.6.d2-d4— …b5 and dxe5 dxe5 Qxd1: the queens come off and the tension is gone.6.Nb1-c3— Blocks the c-pawn: …b5 Bb3 and the bishop has no c2.6.d2-d3— Playable, but passive: …b5 Bb3 Na5 and the bishop pair goes.
What you learned
Guard e4 before you cash the pressure on e5. As Black, answer Re1 with …b5 or …d6 at once.
In your next game
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7, play Re1. If Black then castles instead of playing …b5, take: Bxc6 dxc6 Nxe5. If e4 is already guarded by d3, spend the move on c3 instead.