Alekhine Defense: what should White play?

In the Alekhine Defense, White's most critical and direct continuation is c4, which immediately challenges Black's centralized knight on d5 while securing substantial space in the center. Modern engine analysis ranks c4 as the top choice with an evaluation of +0.97, yielding a 55.1% score across 1.24M recorded games (61.6% of the 2,009,192 games from this position). White may also opt for Nf3, developing quietly while keeping a solid +0.95 evaluation.

Central Expansion with c4

The primary idea behind c4 is to claim central territory and force Black's knight to spend additional tempi retreating. In the main engine variation, play proceeds with c4 Ne7 Nc3 d6 exd6 cxd6, where White liquidates the advanced e5 pawn to preserve piece coordination and control over key central squares. This assertive thrust accounts for the vast majority of practical tests in database play.

Flexible Development with Nf3

The principal alternative is Nf3, which appears in 37.4% of games (751K recorded) and delivers a 54.5% score for White. Rather than committing the c-pawn immediately, White develops kingside harmony while keeping transpositional paths open. An illustrative engine line features Nf3 d6 c4 Ne7 exd6 cxd6, demonstrating that the pawn push c4 often remains an essential follow-up on the subsequent move.

Minor Sidelines

Other continuations occur with far lower frequency. The flank advance a3 is recorded in 1.0% of games (20K recorded), scoring 54.4% with an evaluation of +0.74, often leading into a3 d6 Nf3 dxe5 dxe5 a6. Less frequent tries include the aggressive h4 (+0.82) and the modest developing move Be2 (+0.62), both of which retain a measurable plus for White while steering away from traditional theoretical main lines.