FreeRepublic wrote on 11/20/24 at 15:14:47:
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. Bd3 c5 6. c3 Nc6 7. Ne2 cd4 8. cd4 f6 9. ef6 Nf6 10. O-O Bd6 11. Nf3 Qc7!?
White has a few moves. In declining order of popularity there is 12Bg5, 12Nc3, 12g3, 12h3, etc.
12h3 is very solid and can be found in Play the French (4) by Watson, and The Fully-Fledged French by Moskalenko. Watson has also provided updates at ChessPublishing. Watson on ChessPublishing:
"Popular, although not ambitious. Expect a long game."
"This move has been surprisingly effective and is one of White's most important attempts versus 11. ..Qc7."
Moskalenko FFF: "A rather venomous plan aimed primarily at preventing the activation of Black's pieces."
12. h3!? O-O 13. Be3 Bd7 14. Re1!?
Black's two major moves are 14...Rae8 and 14...Be8. 14...Be8 may be a little more forcing:
14...Be8 15. Ng5 Bf7 16. Rc1 h6 17. Nf7 Qf7
18. Bb1!? (18Ng3 is also possible). The quoted authors continue with 18...Rae8. I've also looked at 18...Nh5. For example 19. a3 g5 20. Qd3 Qg7 21. Kh1 Rf7.
According to the engine, this position teeters on equal or slight edge for White. 12h3 may be the most annoying line for those who play 11...Qc7.
11...0-0 etc. is probably a better way to go to equalize. 11...Qc7 remains more popular because it is more aggressive. Maybe 3...c5 is the easiest way to obtain equality, once you find a line you like. Still, 3...Nf6 and 11...Qc7 lead to very interesting chess in many variations.