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Having secured six victories from six matches, an unbreached defense and a World Cup spot confirmed with matches remaining, England manager Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has made the right selection choices.

Nevertheless, in the preparation for Thursday's home game against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he stated that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the equivalent formation.

"Presently, if we maintain the formation, they won't fit together.

"They might but not in the structure, not maintaining equilibrium that we created and not within the framework that comes also with wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We currently utilize with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

Foden and Bellingham have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but the manager's choices suggest that the Barcelona loanee and Arsenal's winger are his first choices on the left and right flank respectively.

The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

The previous England manager apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven games at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the England team fell to the Spanish in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the stars have performed alongside each other, England have won 10, tied three matches and suffered three losses, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that changes shape when England attack.

Morgan Rogers has been the main number 10 because of his impressive ball progression, strike quality and capacity to penetrate the area when the number nine withdraws.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. The wide attackers regularly feature on the wings and can hold the ball well, engage in one-on-one situations, and appear in scoring positions.

Behind this front four, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a holding midfielder and another with greater freedom to contribute to the attack.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with other creative midfielders for the creative hub, with Kane likely to start up front.

Foden could play as the central striker, which theoretically could allow both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.

There is one way all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel hinted at it this week.

"With his club, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so perhaps in coming months we view him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been deployed in a versatile central position this season.

That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could make him an option as the number eight, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the creative force and Kane as the striker.

Regardless of if Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the international competition, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.