De Zeeuw analyses 8...Bg4 and considers it losing. Here's a sample line:
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 Bc5 5. Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6. Kf1
Qe7 7. Nxh8 d5 8. exd5 Bg4 9. Be2 Bxe2+ 10. Qxe2 Nd4 11. Qxf2 O-O-O 12. b3 Ne4 13. Ba3 Qg5 14. Nf7
I haven't really checked his lines, he may be too pessimistic, as usual.
I assume you're aware we have two or three topics on 8...Nd4, which so far seems ok.
I addressed 8...Bg4 somewhere in the original thread, but I am trying to work through the monstrous complications in the cxd6 line so I cannot get them right now.
Here is the post I made with 8...Bg4
10.Qxe2 Nd4 11.Qxf2 0-0-0 12.b3 (12.d6!?) 12...Ne4 (12...Nxd5? 13.Ba3 c5 14.Ke1 Rf8 15.Qg3 Nxc2+ 16.Kd1 Nxa1 17.Bb2 Nxb3 18.axb3 Rxh8 19.Bxe5) 13.Ba3 Qg5 14.Qf7 Nd6 15.Bxd6 Rxd6 16.Kg1 Ne2+ 17.Kf2 Nd4 18.Kg1 Ne2+ with a draw. The move 12.d6!? may be an improvement.
De Zeeuw's line with 14.Nf7 is much better than 14.Qf7=
14.Nf7 Qg6 15.Qe3 Qxf7+ 16.Kg1 Qxd5 17.c4 Qc6 18.Qh3+ Rd7 19.Nc3 Nxc3 20.dxc3 Ne2+ 21.Kf1 Nf4 22.Qg3 Qf6 23.Qf2 Rf7 24.h4 e4 25.g3 Qxc3 26.gxf4 Qxc1+ 27.Kg2 Qf6 28.Bc1 and white is a piece up in the endgame.
In this line GM Boris Alterman recomended in one of his videos 8. ... Bg4 9.Be2 Be2 10.Qe2 Nd4 11. Qf2 0-0-0 12. Nc3 R:h8
And here he offers 4 variations 5 move deep and black almost alwais playes Ng4.
But I saw that it is preffered
8. ... Nd4
Can someone post some lines here about this variation ? Which is better ?
Andrei