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After achieving six consecutive triumphs out of six, no goals conceded and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, national team coach Thomas Tuchel can argue he has made the right selection choices.

Nevertheless, in the build-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he stated that three of the country's best players - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the equivalent formation.

"At the moment, if we stick with the system, they are unable to feature.

"They might but not with current tactics, not preserving harmony that we created and not in this formation that incorporates wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with specific numbered positions."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

Foden and Bellingham have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but the manager's choices imply that the Barcelona loanee and the Gunners' star are his primary selections on the left and right flank respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

The previous England manager certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven matches at the European Championship in Germany, where Southgate's side were defeated by Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the three have featured simultaneously, England have triumphed 10 times, tied three matches and lost three, scoring 36 times and conceding 14.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

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

The young midfielder has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and capacity to penetrate the area when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring specialist wingers. Saka and Gordon consistently operate in wide areas 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 one defensively strict player and one with more license to contribute to the attack.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be competing with attacking alternatives for the attacking midfield position, with Kane likely to start up front.

Foden could feature as the central striker, which in theory could enable both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.

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

"At Manchester City, he functions as a box-to-box or creative role, so maybe during the next months we regard him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been utilized as a flexible midfielder this season.

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

This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the striker.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the World Cup, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.