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Having secured six victories in six games, zero goals allowed and World Cup qualification confirmed with matches remaining, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

Nevertheless, in the lead-up to Thursday's home game against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he stated that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the same team.

"Presently, if we maintain the formation, they cannot play.

"They can but not in the structure, not maintaining equilibrium that we created and not in this formation that comes also with wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We presently employ with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From automatic picks to contested places

Foden and Bellingham have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections indicate that the Manchester United forward and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wing positions respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the national squad were defeated by Spain in the final.

In the 16 games the trio have played alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and suffered three losses, scoring 36 times and letting in 14 strikes.

Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives

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

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and ability to attack the box when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can maintain possession effectively, engage in one-on-one situations, and appear in scoring positions.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel plays with a midfield two consisting of a holding midfielder and one with more license to join the forward movement.

Potential configurations for England's stars

Foden and Bellingham would be vying against attacking alternatives for the creative hub, with Kane probably featuring up front.

Foden could operate as the main forward, which in theory could permit both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.

There is one way all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel alluded to it this week.

"At Manchester City, he plays almost like a central or attacking midfielder, so potentially in future we consider 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 categorize him as the central midfielder, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the creative force and Kane as the striker.

No matter whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the international competition, what appears positive is his preparedness to omit established stars in the interest of team harmony.