Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Russian Variation
In the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Russian Variation, aim to understand the plans and pawn structures, not just memorize the first moves.
The Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Russian Variation is a chess opening classified under ECO code D56. It is reached after the moves 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 h6 7. Bh4 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Qc2 Nf6 10. Bd3 dxc4 11. Bxc4 c5 12. O-O Nc6 13. Rfd1 Bd7: 26 moves in, with White to play.
It belongs to the Queen's Gambit Declined family — one of many ways the line can branch. Understanding the parent system’s plans is the fastest way to play this variation well.
Club players rarely lose the Queen's Gambit Declined: Lasker Defense, Russian Variation in the opening itself. They lose it a few moves later, when the plan behind the moves runs out: that is what reading your own games in this line shows you.