We know you'll love this course as much as we do
If you aren't satisfied with the course in the first 30 days, we will issue a full refund.
52
Video Introduction
Welcome text
PGN File Download
Video Guide to Uploading the PGN
Uploading the PGN to Chessbase
Uploading the PGN to Chess.com
Uploading the PGN to Chessable
Chessable Icon
Two Knights Part One Video
Two Knights Part Two Video
Tomashevsky-Carlsen Rapid Game
Main Line Model Game
5.a4 and 6.Bd3 Model Game
5.a4 and 8.Bg5 Model Game
Hedgehog/Hippo Video
Main Line Model Game
Carlsen's 7.Bb3 Model Game
Common Trap Model Game
Kotov Variation Video
Babula-Mamedyarov Rapid Game
Kozak-Daneshvar
Aditya-Erigaisi
150 Attack Attempt Video
Erdos-Karamsetty
Martin Del Campo-Berczes
Britton-Moussard
Austrian & 3 Pawns Attack Video
Rasmussen-Veng
Machado Ramirez-Hernandez Basante
Sarana-Nakamura
e4, d4, Move 3 Others Video
Sorensen-Can
Andriasian-Ajrapetjan
Toyama-Plischki
Beefeater Video
Dominguez Perez Takes Down Aronian
Akobian v Nakamura 2019
Munoz Avila v Moskalenko 2023
Akobian v Nakamura 2019
Sjugirov v Moroni 2021
London System Video
Ulloa Centeno-Fierro Baquero
Andrianov-Lu
Florescu-Gordievsky
d4 others Video
Theodorou-Gareyev
Khalil-Sameeh
English Video
Kretschmer-Seyb
Hnydiuk-Swiercz
Pastar-Arapovic
Reti & KIA Video
(2)
Fraser
Less Theory, More Results
The Modern Defence is a Goldilocks opening: rare, yet effective. This ChessGoals course will arm you with lines you will actually see in your games, understanding of the typical pawn structures, and key ideas and motifs you can apply across variations. A full Black repertoire against 1.e4, 1.d4 and others in only 94 lines - beat that! **Lines you’ll actually see in your games** Lines from the course are extremely likely to appear in your games. A huge reason I chose to learn the Modern is that I was sick of learning tonnes of theory in an opening like the Sicilian, just for my opponent to play an early sideline. With the Modern, players are tempted into playing the mainlines because they can’t resist going for the big centre. I’ve even had London players play 2.e4 instead of their usual setup! **Deadly at all levels** At the master level, g6 is only played 1% of the time against e4 but Black is winning 41% compared to White’s 28%! (Source: Lichess masters database 2024-2025) Don’t let certain GMs put you off. The Modern and other hypermodern openings have an underserved bad reputation at the high-level. Maybe it’s because, as the stats show, masters are losing to it ;). More seriously, top-level players generally don’t want double-edged positions where both sides can fight for the win. They want slow, controlled positions where they can squeeze risk-free. The Modern is not like that. **Play positions, not engines** Some positions in this course give a healthy eval advantage to white. Luckily, we aren’t playing engines! In practice, the Modern leads to complicated, fascinating middle game positions with chances for both sides. Exactly the type of positions that reward the player who has more experience in the positions and understanding of the typical plans that this course offers. **Who should buy this course** Consider the Modern if you: - love the idea of throwing your opponent off their prep from move 1 - enjoy double-edged positions where Black is fighting for the win - want to expand your understanding of pawn structures and playing with imbalances - want an opening where you will commonly see mainlines in online and OTB games I would not recommend this course as a first opening repertoire for a beginner player, due to the very flexible nature of the structures. For example, some lines transpose into the Caro-Kann, so it’s helpful to already be familiar with the ideas there. I would also not recommend this course to a player who adamantly prefers slower, controlled positions over dynamic, double-edged ones. Thanks to Matt and Jesse for creating such a great resource!
Daniel
Getting more results with less study
This course is great! Having an answer to whatever white throws at you in one package is really handy. And in my experience, your opponents will be out of book VERY quickly. The best part of this course is that everything is explained really well, but it’s not overwhelming. I worked diligently on it for a week (45 minutes a day or so), and felt like I had a good grasp on the course. Now, I just watch one of the videos once or twice a week to freshen up or enhance my understanding in a line I messed up in a game. I’ve tried several opening books, but the lines just couldn’t penetrate my mind. These on the other hand have to a great degree, and I feel like I have natural play in almost all scenarios. Really well done course, thanks again!