French Defense: Advance Variation, Lputian Variation

French Defense: Advance Variation

Definition

The Advance Variation of the French Defense arises after the moves 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5. Instead of exchanging on d5 (Exchange Variation) or defending the e-pawn with 3.Nc3/3.Nd2 (Tarrasch or Classical), White immediately pushes the e-pawn, gaining space in the center but closing the position.

Strategic Themes

• Space Advantage for White: The pawn on e5 cramps Black’s king-side and restricts the natural …Nf6 jump.
• Fixed Center = Long-Term Plans: Because the center is locked, both sides maneuver behind the pawn chain before a break (…c5, …f6 for Black; c4, f4, or even g4 for White).
• Minor-Piece Battles: Good squares (c3, d4, f4 for White knights; f5, e7, g6 for Black knights) are fought over for many moves.
• Typical Pawn Breaks:
  • Black: …c5 (most common), …f6, …Nc6 followed by …Qb6, or …Ne7-f5.
  • White: c4, f4, or the minority attack b3–a4–b5 when Black plays …c5 early.

Historical Significance

The variation dates back to the 19th century (Steinitz–von Bardeleben, Hastings 1895) but was systematized by Aron Nimzowitsch in the 1920s. In modern times it became a favorite of radical space-grabbers such as Viktor Korchnoi (who employed it in his world-title matches with Anatoly Karpov in 1978 and 1981) and, more recently, by top grandmasters like Alexander Grischuk and Magnus Carlsen when they want to avoid well-trodden main-line theory.

Main Defensive Set-Ups for Black

1. Short-route Counterplay: 3…c5 4.c3 Nc6 – the dynamic main line (also leads to Lputian, Milner-Barry, etc.).
2. Classical Blockade: 3…c5 4.c3 Qb6 – focuses on immediate pressure on d4 and b2.
3. Offbeat Attempts: 3…Bd7, 3…b6, or 3…f6 – unbalancing approaches to lure White out of preparation.

Illustrative Mini-Game

The following bare-bones PGN shows a postcard-version of the main idea with …c5 and …Qb6:

Interesting Facts & Anecdotes

• GM Viktor Korchnoi once quipped that the Advance Variation was “the French player’s dentist appointment”—inevitable but always painful.
• The line enjoyed a surge in online blitz after Magnus Carlsen crushed Hikaru Nakamura with it in the 2020 Chessable Masters rapid tournament.
• Computer engines originally disliked 3.e5, judging the space as illusory, but neural-network engines (e.g., Leela) now rate its practical chances highly for White.

French Defense: Advance Variation, Lputian Variation

Definition

The Lputian Variation is a sub-line of the Advance French characterized (in its most widely accepted form) by the move order 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Bd7. It is named after Armenian Grandmaster Smbat Lputian, who popularized 5…Bd7 in the 1980s as a flexible antidote to well-analyzed main lines involving …Qb6 or …Nge7.

How the Variation Works

• 5…Bd7 – a quiet multi-purpose move:
  • Prepares …Qb6 without allowing the tactical idea 6.dxc5 Bxc5 7.b4.
  • Supports a later …cxd4 and recapture with the bishop, keeping Black’s queenside structure fluid.
  • Retains the option of placing the dark-squared bishop on b5 or a4 after …cxd4, pinning a knight.
• Typical Continuations:
  1. 6.a3 (preventing …Bb4) …f6 7.b4 cxd4 8.cxd4 fxe5
  2. 6.Be2 Nge7 7.0-0 Nf5 8.g4 Nfe7 – an unbalanced fight on both wings
  3. 6.Bd3 Qb6 7.dxc5 Bxc5 8.0-0 a5 – Black gains pressure on the a- and c-files

Strategic & Historical Significance

When classical main lines were becoming deeply analyzed with early computer databases, Lputian’s 5…Bd7 offered French defenders a playable sideline with teeth. It avoids immediate weaknesses, keeps the tension, and often steers the game into middlegames with opposite-side castling or minority-attack structures that are less theoretical and more about understanding.

Notable Games

• Lputian vs. Ehlvest, Soviet Championship 1987 – the line’s namesake demonstrated the power of the queenside pawn majority, eventually winning a strategic endgame.
• Bacrot vs. Anand, Wijk aan Zee 2003 – Anand equalized effortlessly with 5…Bd7 and later generated dangerous counterplay on the kingside.
• AlphaZero vs. Stockfish, 2018 sparring tests – AlphaZero chose the Lputian for Black, revealing its compatibility with modern engine strategy.

Model Position

After the natural sequence 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bd7 6.Be2 Nge7 7.0-0, the pawn structure is still intact:

• White: Pawns on a2-b2-c3-d4-e5-f2-g2-h2; pieces ready for a kingside pawn storm (g4-h4).
• Black: Pawns on a7-b7-c5-d5-e6-f7-g7-h7; bishop pair intact; break ideas …Nf5 and …f6.

Interesting Facts & Tidbits

• The original spelling of the Armenian GM’s surname is “Լպուտյան,” transliterated as “Lputian,” but you will often see “Lputjan” or “Lputyan” in older magazines.
• In a 2009 interview, GM Lputian revealed he found 5…Bd7 while preparing for the USSR Team Championship with the simple idea “my bishop is safer on d7 than c8.”
• Because the bishop quietly retreats, some French aficionados jokingly refer to the line as “the ostrich system, hiding its head before counter-attacking.