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With six wins out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

Yet, in the build-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he raised questions when he said that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the same team.

"Presently, if we stick with the system, they won't fit together.

"They might but not in the structure, not preserving harmony that we developed and not within the framework that incorporates wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From automatic picks to contested places

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections imply that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his primary selections on the left and right flank respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?

Former Three Lions boss certainly thought so.

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

In the 16 fixtures the three have featured simultaneously, England have triumphed 10 times, drawn three and been defeated three times, scoring 36 times and allowing 14 goals.

Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives

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

The Aston Villa player has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his strong ball-carrying, strike quality and ability to attack the box when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can maintain possession effectively, challenge defenders, and enter the area to finish.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and a partner with attacking liberty to support offensive play.

So how could Tuchel use these three players?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with attacking alternatives for the number 10 role, with Kane probably featuring up front.

Foden could feature as the main forward, which in theory could permit both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.

There is an alternative approach all three could play in this system and Tuchel alluded to it this week.

"For Man City, he functions as a number eight or 10, so maybe during the next months we view him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season.

That has permitted him to contribute from midfield and could make him an option as the central midfielder, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the creative force and Kane as the center forward.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the global tournament, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the name of balance.