Réti Opening: dxc4 — A Small Edge That Packs a Punch

Your move 3.e4 is the whole point. You've given up a pawn on c4, but in return you build a powerful pawn centre with e4 and d4 (after you recapture on d4 or push there). This centre cramps Black, gives your pieces natural squares, and often forces Black to react passively or waste time defending. If Black doesn't challenge it immediately, you'll develop with tempo: Bxc4, d2-d4, 0-0, and Re1, with a classic central grip. The engine's best continuation — Nf6 e5 Nd5 Bxc4 — shows exactly this: Black kicks your e-pawn, you advance it, and then you calmly recapture the c4-pawn with the bishop, emerging with a comfortable lead in development and space.

Your opponents will try a handful of responses, and the statistics reveal which ones you should welcome. Here are the top three by popularity and what you do against each. Nc6 (35,492 games, White scores 53.9%): Black develops and eyes d4. You should recapture the pawn with Bxc4, then continue developing — 0-0, d2-d4, and Re1 are natural. The knight on c6 doesn't threaten much yet, and your centre is solid. b5 (32,137 games, White scores 56.1%): This is the most important reply to know — see the next section. Bg4 (23,974 games, White scores 57.2%): Black pins your knight. Meet it with energetic play: recapture Bxc4, then consider h3 to ask the bishop what it wants, or simply continue development with d4 and Be3. Your score jumps to 57.2% here, so stay calm and develop.

Black's second-most-popular move, 4...b5, is actually a mistake — the engine calls it an inaccuracy that loses roughly 0.6 pawns. Black tries to hold the extra pawn on c4, but it's an overextension that weakens the queenside and wastes time. The correct response for White is to ignore the pawn for a moment and play energetically. The engine recommends continuing with your development and breaking open the centre — moves like a4 to challenge the b-pawn or d4 with central threats work well. In the database, White scores 56.1% against b5, so you're already in a favourable spot if you know how to handle it. The key: don't chase pawns. Build your centre, open lines, and let Black's queenside weaknesses become the target later.

This position from 158,886 games paints a clear picture: White wins 55.3% of the time, Black wins 41.1%, and draws are rare at 3.6%. That high win rate combined with the low draw rate tells you this is a fighting opening — you're unlikely to get a quiet, equal game. If you enjoy active positions with more winning chances than your opponent, this line suits you. The engine's best move for Black (Nf6) only gives White a 54.3% score, which is slightly below the average — that shows Black's best try dulls your edge just a little. But against anything else (b5, Bg4, e6, Be6), your score climbs to 55.7% or higher. Your job is to know the basic ideas, and you'll be outperforming the average.