Marco Romano: Level 57 Chess Rival (2106 ELO)

Rook tier · Iron Defense · plays the Smith-Morra Gambit

How Marco plays

Marco is an iron defender, and at 52 he is proud of it. His choice against 1.e4 says everything: he accepts the Smith-Morra pawn, develops with ...Nc6, ...d6 and ...e6, and then invites White to prove that the compensation is real. He is completely at home in a cramped position as long as it is solid, and he will happily spend several moves just consolidating.

What he wants most is time. If White's initiative fades, the extra pawn starts to count and the endgame becomes his. He is less comfortable when the pressure is applied immediately and from several directions, because a passive defender can only cover so many squares. Marco also tends to trust his structure, keeping the d6 pawn as the centre of his defence. Give him a slow game and he will consolidate; keep him busy every move and the defensive load eventually becomes too much.

At 2106 ELO, Marco plays at master strength. Outright blunders are rare, so you need a sound opening, a clear plan and accurate calculation in sharp moments. A draw against him is a good result; a win means you played a very good game.

Smith-Morra Gambit: the line Marco plays

Marco plays the Black side of the Smith-Morra Gambit: after 1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 they take the pawn with ...dxc3 and then develop with ...Nc6, ...d6, ...e6 and ...Nf6. Black keeps the extra pawn and tries to survive White's lead in development.

1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3 Nc6 5.Nf3 d6 6.Bc4 e6 7.O-O Nf6 8.Qe2 Be7

Learn it move by move: Smith-Morra Gambit walkthrough

How to beat Marco

  1. Place your queen's knight on b5 when possible. From there it hits d6 and c7, and a rook on c1 or d1 behind it makes his defensive task twice as hard.
  2. Bring your dark-squared bishop to f4 to pressure d6. Combined with a rook on d1, the pawn becomes a real target and his pieces are tied down to defend it.
  3. Keep the queens on. If you trade queens while still a pawn down, you are playing the endgame he wants without the initiative that justified your gambit.
  4. If you gambit the pawn, play for activity, not material: castle, put a rook on d1 and the queen on e2, and look for Nd5 or e5 to rip open the d-file. If you would rather not gambit, 2.Nf3 leads to an Open Sicilian where they reply ...d6 and ...a6.
  5. The book answers 1.e4 (including the Alapin 2.c3 and the Open Sicilian 2.Nf3). Open 1.d4 and he is out of book immediately.

What beating Marco teaches you

Beating Marco teaches you how to maintain an initiative with a material deficit, using every tempo to increase pressure rather than winning back the pawn.

Neighbours on the ladder