Van't Kruijs Opening: what should White play?

In this position from the Van't Kruijs Opening, White's most active continuation is the central thrust c4, which carries an engine evaluation of +0.51 and yields a 51.2% score across 4.1K recorded games. While the classic developing move Nf3 is chosen in 75.2% of the 47,565 recorded games with an evaluation of +0.58, playing c4 challenges Black's Dutch-style pawn wedge directly. White seeks to break open the center before committing the kingside pieces, undermining Black's control over the key central squares.

Undermining the Dutch Pawn Structure

By advancing c4, White immediately contests Black's d5 outpost and pressures the light squares. Unlike traditional setups where White delays this push, playing it on move six exploits the time Black spent advancing flank pawns. A standard engine continuation runs c4 c5 dxc5 Bxc5 Nc3 O-O, leading to an open position where White's minor pieces secure active central diagonals against Black's kingside castling arrangement.

Classical Development with Nf3

By far the most common human approach is Nf3, featured in 36K games (75.2%) with a 51.0% score for White. This move develops the kingside naturally and prepares rapid castling, illustrated by the line Nf3 Bd6 Be2 O-O O-O Ne4. It allows White to maintain a solid, flexible setup reminiscent of a London System or Stonewall structure, ensuring steady piece coordination before initiating pawn contact in the center.

Alternative Bishop Deployments

White also has quieter developing moves with the light-squared bishop. Developing immediately with Be2 (+0.53) occurs in 7.3% of games, scoring 47.9% and leading toward Be2 Bd6 Nf3 Nc6 O-O Ne4. Alternatively, Bd3 (+0.45) appears in 8.8% of games, yielding Bd3 c5 Nf3 cxd4 exd4 Bd6 with a 48.0% score, though it exposes the piece to trades along the d6 diagonal.