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Having secured six victories from six matches, no goals conceded and World Cup qualification confirmed with matches remaining, national team coach Thomas Tuchel can argue he has made the right selection choices.

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

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

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

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but the manager's choices imply that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wide areas respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?

The previous England manager evidently thought it possible.

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

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

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has played a 4-2-3-1 system that alters structure when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and skill in entering the penalty area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can retain the ball skillfully, take their full-back on, and appear in scoring positions.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a holding midfielder and a partner with attacking liberty to support offensive play.

Potential configurations for England's stars

Foden and Bellingham would be vying against attacking alternatives for the number 10 role, with Kane expected to lead up front.

Foden could feature as the number nine, which in theory could enable both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.

There is a potential solution all three could play in this system and Tuchel alluded to it this week.

"At Manchester City, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so maybe during the next months we consider him as a number eight," he said.

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

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

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

Regardless of if Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the international competition, what bodes well is his willingness to leave big players out in the name of balance.