Again and again I meet 2... Nf6 and white has an easy advantage after 3.cxd5 Nxd5 4.Nf3.
Does anyone know, why this is played so often nowadays. Years ago I never met this mistake. Playing the Grünfeld would be much better for black.
Why is it such an advantage for white? In this game black goes on to fianchetto their bishop, but that is probably not the best continuation. If you don't immediately chase the knight with e4, which you didn't, black has a chance to play Bf5, both preventing e4 and also threatening Bxb2. The latter would weaken the a5e1 diagonal to the king, and get rid of the usually bad light bishop for white's usually active knight. To avoid this, white can play Nc3, but now Nxc3 leaves white with a weak pawn on c3. I don't say Black has an advantage, but I don't see white looking better than they usually do after 4 or 5 moves in Queen's gambit (white generally has an advantage in any normal sequence).
White's win rate after cxd5 in this position is pretty absurd. White ends up with a pretty huge lead in development and strong control of the centre. In Master's database White wins 58% to 7% from this position (!).
1 ... Nf6 is probably the most popular move together with 1 ... d5 and you seem to imply it's a mistake (??).
In the position you show (after Nxd5) it seems also to me that White has already a better position. Full pawn center and an advantage in development. But Black can still play c7-c5 so i don't think it's over. Definitely not a mistake, maybe a "slow"/"quiet"/"unambitious" move order. Also keep in mind people might play this to avoid Theory.
@kleiner0 he means 2. nf6 in the move order 1. d4 d5 2. c4 nf6
ok, but he shows a game with a 1 d5, Nf6; move order. :D
Marshall defense is dubious (or even outright bad).
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_DefenseIt‘s the internet, people play by ear.
Because they are bad players and don't know any better. I mean just read some of the comments on this very post. What can you expect?
If I wanted to play 2.nf6 I wouldn't recapture until white put a piece on c3 and would meet E4 with Nc3 and play c5
@TheLadyOf178 Then Black has to meet Qa4+.
