Wing Gambit

The Wing Gambit arises when White meets the French with 2. Nf3 and 3. e5, and answers Black's standard 3...c5 with 4. b4. The b-pawn is offered to deflect the c5-pawn from its attack on the center. If Black takes, White no longer faces the usual pressure against the base of the chain and can aim to rebuild it with d4, using the open lines on the queenside for piece play. The line is uncommon and has little established theory. It is unorthodox, but it is regarded as a reasonable try against the French, and the engine assessment is close to level.

Accepting with 4...cxb4 is the principled reply and the most frequent one. White often goes on to offer the a-pawn too, though Black seldom takes this second pawn. Declining is also playable. 4...Nc6 is the next most common choice, and White has scored well against it in online games. 4...c4 closes the queenside and is less common, but Black's results with it are slightly better than White's. Other tries include 4...b6, which aims to exchange light-squared bishops, and 4...d4, which claims central space and hinders White's development.