Hi RB.
It looks like an Advanced French 'cept Black has not played e6. (yet)
Someone posted stats favouring White after 3...d6.
My OTB DB has 778 games with this postion.
Black winning 56% of the games.
Looking at the grades they tend to go with the games.
(The better player wins either side in most cases - no need
to call Sherlock Holmes to figure that one out.)
But in the majority of the games 5.exd5 was played here.
Again stats favout Black 1020 games Black wins 55%.
I think it simply shows us that Morra Gambit players (often the lower graded
player) not getting the game they want (or aided by memory of book moves)
drift into lost games.
On the RHP DB after 5.e5 the figure is 58% favouring Black.
Playing over a few of the Black wins a developing pattern emerges.
The Knight skips out to h6 and thanks to e4-e5 he now has the square f4.
The b8 Knight develops to c6 and with the other knight on f4 the blocked
pawn on d4 is feeling the pinch.
The c8 Bishop goes to g4 after Nf3 and then Black plays e6.
Bg7 - 0-0 and Black then plays f6. A ready made developing plan.
The Knight is good there in a locked centre. White can shift it with g4
but where is he castling? Note also it covers h6 twice so no Qd2-Be3-h6 ideas.
Two games - first an OTB game.
Liberadzki(1969) - Solnicki (2010) Rewal 2008
1. e4 c5 2. c3 g6 3. d4 cxd4 4. cxd4 d5 5. e5 Nc6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be2 Nh6 8.h3 {Played to stop the Bg4 idea.} 8... O-O 9. Bf3 Nf5 10. Nge2 e6 11. Be3 f6 12. exf6 Qxf6 13. Nb5 Nxe3 14.fxe3 Qh4+ 15. Kd2 Bd7 16. Nbc3 Bh6 17. Bg4 {Black played 17...Qf2 and won about 7 moves later. The obvious sac works.} 17... Bxe3+ 18. Kxe3 Qh6+ {A smashing backward attacking move.} 19. Kd3 Nb4
aanepade - AADavid1963 RHP 2009
Chosen because White is doing OK till he goes sac happy.
The Knight lands on f4 and the tactics start.
1. e4 c5 2. c3 g6 3. d4 cxd4 4. cxd4 d5 5. e5 Nc6 6. Bb5 Bd7 {6...a6 Is better I'm thinking.} 7. Nc3 e6 {Now it is an Advanced French and I like White but I'd take Black.} 8.Nf3 Nge7 9. Bg5 a6 10. Bf6 Rg8 11. Qb3 axb5 12. Nxb5 {Apparently the threat of 13.Nd6 mate was the idea behind the piece sac. Black shows he has seen just that little buit deeper.} 12... Qa5+ 13. Kd1 {The worse move Black could possibly make though it is not all that obvious at first.} 13... Nf5 14. g4 {White kicks....} 14... Nfxd4 {...Black tricks. Looks like it losses a piece but...} 15. Nfxd4 Nxd4 {Now we see it. If 16.Nxd4 then 16...Ba4 pins and wins the Queen.} 16. Qh3 {There is nothing else to to do. White is off after the g8 Rook.} 16... Bxb5 17. Qxh7 Be2+ 18. Kc1 Rc8+ 19. Kb1 Bd3