After analyzing the board, my best strategy is to create a strong, forcing threat. Dropping an O in column 4 will land at row 3 (since rows 4 and 5 in that column already have my O pieces), creating a vertical stack of three O's (at rows 3, 4, and 5). This sets up an immediate threat; on my next turn, I could complete a vertical connect four if my opponent doesn’t block in column 4. Given that there’s no immediate win for my opponent and this move forces them to respond defensively, I choose column 4.