← Alekhine's Defense

Practice: Four Pawns Attack

White's most aggressive try

White builds a massive four-pawn centre with e5, d4, c4, and f4. An aggressive attempt to crush Black, but the centre can become a target if Black plays accurately.

1. e4 Nf6
2. e5 Nd5
3. d4 d6
4. c4 Nb6
5. f4
♟

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Key strategic ideas

  • 1...Nf6 invites White to chase the knight with e5, gaining space but stretching the pawns thin.
  • Black's plan is to provoke White into pushing pawns, then strike back when the pawn chain becomes overstretched.
  • After White pushes e5, Black retreats the knight and waits for the right moment to break with ...d6 or ...c5.

Common mistakes & traps

  • The Four Pawns Attack (4.c4 Nb6 5.f4 d6 6.e5) looks scary for Black, but 6...Nf5 7.Be3 dxe5 8.fxe5 c5! gives Black excellent counterplay. White's centre starts to fall apart.
  • After 2.e5 Nd5 3.c4 Nb6 4.d4 d6 5.exd6 exd6, the position is equal. Black's ...d5 break fixes the knight on b6 and challenges White's centre.

Pawn structure notes

White's stretched pawns (e5, d4, c4) against Black's solid d6 and e6. Black wants to prove that White's centre is a target. After Black plays ...d5, the pawn structure simplifies.

Tips

  • The Four Pawns Attack is the most ambitious reply - White gains huge space
  • Black must attack the centre with …dxe5 or …c5 before White consolidates
  • The pawns can also become over-extended and vulnerable to counterattack

About this line

This line is rated advanced. Practice it repeatedly until you can play the entire sequence without thinking. The in-app trainer tracks your perfect streaks and celebrates milestones.