Now that c5 is no longer available, the destiny of this knight has become less evident.

Limiting the rook on e3.

Securing the queenside pawns with a roughly equal game.

Preparing c4-c5 and c3-c4 in order to clear the long diagonal, even at the cost of a pawn.

2...Qxc3 3.cxd6 cxd6 4.Bd2 Qf6 5.Nd4 , followed by Qb3 and Bc3, White enjoys excellent compensation.

Preparing g2-g4 in order to step up the pressure on the enemy kingside.

Black wisely tries to escape with his king, and he should have stuck to this plan on the coming moves.

White has a clear initiative.

Preparing Nd1-e3 in order to exploit the blockading square on e3 in a more powerful way.