Queen's Gambit Accepted: Normal Variation – 4.Ne5 vs Bg4

In the Queen's Gambit Accepted, Black grabs a pawn and holds it with ...Bg4, pinning the knight to the queen. By playing 4.Ne5, you refuse to waste time saving the pawn and instead ask Black a tough question: what is the bishop doing here? The knight threatens to capture the bishop or force it into a bad square, and after the dust settles White gets a lead in development and excellent central control. The engine's recommended continuation — 4...Nf6 5.Nxg4 Nxg4 6.e4 — shows the ideal outcome: White kicks the knight away, seizes the centre with e4, and Black's pieces are scattered. Whatever Black tries, you will emerge with a comfortable, long-term edge.

The most popular move in the database is 4...Be6, played over 20,500 times. It saves the bishop but leaves it passively placed, and White scores 63.8% against it. The engine prefers 4...Nf6, which is Black's best try. But many players choose 4...Bf5 instead — and that's a mistake. According to the statistics, 4...Bf5 is an inaccuracy that loses roughly 0.7 pawns of advantage compared to the correct 4...Nf6. Even more punishing is 4...f5, a full mistake that tosses away about 1.2 pawns. White scores a crushing 72.3% against 4...f5. So when Black errs, don't hesitate — trust your position and keep pressing.

Let's look at what you'll face most often, and how the engine suggests you answer each one. 4...Be6 (20,562 games) — Black protects the bishop but blocks the e-pawn. Keep developing naturally; your edge is real 4...Bf5 (7,710 games) — a known inaccuracy. The knight on e5 is well-placed to harass it. Follow up with principled development and central expansion 4...Bh5 (6,180 games) — Black retreats along the diagonal, keeping the pin alive but losing time. Your score drops slightly to 53.6% here, so stay alert and don't let Black reorganise 4...Nf6 (4,859 games) — the engine's best move. White still scores 62.0%. The model line is 4...Nf6 5.Nxg4 Nxg4 6.e4, giving you a powerful pawn centre and the bishop pair.

Across 43,052 games, White wins 63.0%, draws just 3.0%, and Black wins 34.0%. That low draw rate is striking — this opening rarely peters out into a quiet finish. Almost two-thirds of the time you walk away with the full point. White's score against Black's most common response — 4...Be6, where White wins 63.8% — is almost identical to the overall 63.0%, meaning your chances stay high no matter which fifth move Black picks. This is a practical opening: you don't need perfect memory to keep an edge, just solid follow-up moves and a willingness to exploit your opponent's mistakes when they appear.