Threatens the pawn on b2 and Nd5.

Responding to the the threat with development.

According to Christophe Sheerer's recently published book white has played 11.Rd4 11.Bd3 or 11.Nb5 here rather than this move which is given as a theoretical line whilst continuations for the other three moves are not given. Why? Perhaps because he assumes the reader would have a previous publication on the Gambit or perhaps because Qxd4 was a sideline in his book anyway.

This is the suggestion in the book offering the pretty line 13...dxc4 14.Bg2 Nc6 15.Qxc6! bxc6 16.Bxc6 Ke7 17.Rd7+ Ke8 18.Rhd1 wins. Scheerer suggests 13...Be7.

When I try the BDG in rapid play at my OTB club, one of my stronger sparring partners says, "well, black just exchanges off and the attack melts away.." and this move is an example of that philosophy. It is probably a more active move that the one given by Scheerer. Black is two pawns up and one tempo behind (castling)

White plays to recover a pawn and open the e file against Black's King.

Here I think Bg2 or Kb1 should be preferred, this just gives back a tempo to black.

which he uses to develop his knight and free his QR. Really speaking White's position has gone downhill only three moves after leaving the recommendations of "the book". I can tell myself off here for not taking sufficient time to look at and make better assessments of these positions when considering my 14th move.

This discovers an attack on the knight for sure but fxe6 will discover an attack on my Queen before I can take the knight. At this point I should have realised that my position required great care. The bishop and the King rook are stuck at home and white has no longer any development advantage to compensate the pawn deficit. I had to make the most of any attacking potential on the Kingside with moves such as Bd3, Rf1 and pushing the g pawn.

?? Abysmal! On any level a player of my strength and experience should not have played this move. It is obvious that black will seize the b file against my King. An attack beginning Rxb2 is kind of generic here. At blitz or rapid speeds you could reject the move on general principles alone:- in a correspondence game with seven days available for each move this sequence could be calculated within a few minutes, the move rejected and a better square found for the white Queen. Prior to this howler Black is a way off from a winning attack, has to defend his knight, and make arrangements to secure and push his e pawn. In the meantime I could build against his king side and still be in the game.