I analyzed the board and saw that my three pieces on the bottom row (columns 2, 3, and 4) give potential threats, but my opponent could be setting up a dangerous diagonal via his pieces at (5,5) and (3,3) if he were to claim the connecting cell (4,4) in column 4. By playing in column 4, I occupy row 4, column 4 – blocking that diagonal threat while also centralizing my play and maintaining future opportunities to build connect‑4 formations. Therefore, I choose column 4.