Fried Liver Attack
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5
A repertoire for White · ECO C57
The Fried Liver Attack (4.Ng5 against the Two Knights, sacrificing on f7) drags Black's king to the middle of the board on move six — and keeps it there. One of chess's most famous attacking weapons, feared at every level below master and fun at every level, period.
Start the Fried Liver Attack course
Mainline
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Nxf7 Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3
Key ideas
- Strike f7 with 4.Ng5 — the one natural developing move Black allows it against 3...Nf6.
- After 5...Nxd5, sacrifice with 6.Nxf7!: the king walks to e6 and every White piece joins the hunt.
- Master the attacking geometry: Qf3+, Nc3, O-O and d4 arrive before Black untangles.
- Know the safer sidelines too — when Black avoids 5...Nxd5, White keeps a pleasant initiative anyway.
Typical plans and structures
In the main sacrifice, White plays Qf3+, Nc3 and d4 with rooks flooding the center files while Black's king shelters awkwardly around e6/e7 — the course drills the precise attacking sequences and the endings where White regains material with interest. Against the correct 5...Na5 (the Polerio/main defense avoiding the sac), White plays the modern d3 and Bd3 setups keeping structure and initiative. Either way, Black must know sharp theory just to survive the opening.
Who should play it
Attacking players — and anyone who wants 1.e4 e5 games decided by initiative and calculation rather than long positional grinds.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Fried Liver Attack sound?
The knight sacrifice itself is objectively strong — engines confirm White keeps at least full compensation with a raging attack, and practical results are devastating. Black's real defense is avoiding it with 5...Na5 instead of 5...Nxd5, which the course covers thoroughly.
What if Black plays the Traxler counterattack?
The wild 4...Bc5!? invites madness. The course gives a clear, reliable path through the complications — the lines where preparation matters most, since one wrong move loses for either side.
Why is it called the Fried Liver?
The name comes from the Italian 'fegatello' — a liver skewered like Black's f7-pawn and king. The attack was analyzed as far back as the 1600s by Polerio and remains one of the oldest still-dangerous weapons in chess.
New to a concept? Every term is defined in the chess terms glossary.