Breakdown of De haber recordado la apertura, él habría tenido una ventaja decisiva.
él
he
tener
to have
un
a, an (masculine)
recordar
to remember
haber
(auxiliary) have
la ventaja
advantage
de
if (+ infinitive)
decisivo
decisive
la apertura
opening
Questions & Answers about De haber recordado la apertura, él habría tenido una ventaja decisiva.
Why does this sentence use De haber recordado instead of Si él hubiera recordado?
Both mean the exact same thing ("If he had remembered"), but de followed by an infinitive is a stylish, slightly more formal way to express an "if" condition. Because the condition is in the past, we use the perfect infinitive (haber + past participle). While si hubiera recordado is more common in everyday speech, this structure is heavily used in writing and formal contexts.
How do we know who is supposed to remember the opening if haber is in the infinitive?
When you use the de + infinitive structure for a condition, the unstated subject of the infinitive is understood to be the same as the subject in the second half of the sentence. Here, the main clause tells us that él (he) would have had an advantage, so we naturally understand that he is also the one who failed to remember the opening.
Could I use this de + infinitive structure for a present or future condition instead of the past?
Yes, absolutely. To talk about a present or future hypothetical, you just use de plus a simple infinitive. For example, De recordar la apertura, él tendría una ventaja means "If he remembered the opening, he would have an advantage." The addition of haber is what pushes the condition back into the past.
What kind of "opening" is la apertura referring to here?
Apertura can refer to the physical opening of a door, a store's grand opening, or the beginning of an event. However, because the sentence pairs it with gaining a ventaja decisiva (decisive advantage), it is highly likely talking about a chess match, where memorizing a specific opening sequence is a core strategy.
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