This line in the Queen Gambit Declined:
1. d4 d5 2. c4 Nf6
and then
3. Nc6?
Which is the most popular move according to chesstempo.
Yet, stockfish labels it as an inaccuracy, what?
imgur.com/a/HmEuEgmI look at the list of popular TV shows/movies, whether it's from the critics or the viewers, and I wonder how people can watch this garbage. Just because something is popular, that doesn't make it right.
The most correct move is 3. cxd5 which gains more control of the center. This is labeled as an inaccuracy just like a missed mate-in-one would be labeled as wrong.
3. cxd5 is the most popular move in the Masters database on Lichess, with white achieving an enormous plus score, far better than that of the alternatives.
Most people are bad at chess. If you're going to argue soundness by popularity, at least limit your sample to strong players who are likely to know their openings.
3. cxd5 is also more accurate, cause you win
(a) a tempo:
If 3 ... Nxd5 4. e4
If 3 ... Qxd5 4. Nc3
OR:
(b) you at least exchanged your c-pawn for the central d-pawn and have a half-open c-file to work with
The chesstempo database seems to show not the number of times the move was played, but the number of occurrences for the position reached after that move is played. Same for the chessgames database.
The lichess database avoids such confusion. It gives the number of times the move was played on the position you're looking at.
Edit: I'm still impressed that some great GMs haven't played 3.cxd5, indeed.
@spartako, you are unlikely to find GM games from OP cases cos there wont be any GM from black playing as OP position and allowing cxd5. If black player allow such crappy move in move 2, he wont be a GM anymore.
@drmrboss There's a Karpov-Ivanchuk game, for instance, that has such dubious move order.
Could be a case of all databases being wrong about it (which I haven't looked up properly) or a case that Ivanchuk was trying to get Karpov into some preparation.
I know cxd5 is best by far, but do you even know what to do as white if 3.cxd5 g6
3.e4..Free 1 pawn is seriously advantagous for white. There was a few games that I saw in master games has no supporting evidence for sound play.For example, in 1960-70, King gambit was popular, but in 2019 with powerful engines King gambit is already known as extremely bad for white, almost no master will play anymore.
Btw, I wont look at master games of 2500 players, where we can access database of 3500 computers these days or analyse with 3500 rated Stockfish. :)
ignoring the specific move being discussed as it sounds like it might actually be an inaccuracy, stockfish's idea of an inaccuracy especially early in the game can be taken with a grain of salt.
There are a few popular and well studied lines GMs play early on in the game that stockfish labels an inaccuracy, and it's not uncommon for GMs to reject stockfish's first choice move as unplayable.
