Sicilian Defense: Löwenthal Variation
B32 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5
White scores 51.9% here across 543 club games — but the 32.0% who answer Nxc6 score 43.7%, 8 points worse.
What White actually plays here
Across 543 games from a Lichess-derived book of club play, White scores 51.9% in this position. These are the replies people choose, and how each one works out.
| Reply | Games | Share | White scores | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nb5 | 186 | 34.3% | 61.3% | holds up |
| Nxc6 | 174 | 32.0% | 43.7% | below the line |
| Nb3 | 79 | 14.5% | 46.8% | below the line |
| Nf3 | 53 | 9.8% | 47.2% | below the line |
| Nf5 | 51 | 9.4% | 58.8% | holds up |
"Below the line" means the reply scores at least three points worse than the position does overall. Replies played fewer than 25 times are left out: the sample is too small to read.
Is this costing you anything?
A table of averages cannot tell you whether you go wrong here — only your own games can. Opening Leak Lab reads your Chess.com or Lichess archive, finds the decisions you repeat, and checks each one against this book and a bundled Stockfish.