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Having secured six victories from six matches, zero goals allowed and World Cup qualification assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

Nevertheless, 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.

"Currently, if we maintain the formation, they are unable to feature.

"It's possible but not with current tactics, not preserving harmony that we created and not for the structure that also includes wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We presently employ with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but his team selections imply that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his primary selections on the wing positions respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?

The previous England manager evidently thought it possible.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven fixtures 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 secured 10 victories, tied three matches and suffered three losses, registering 36 scores and conceding 14.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

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

The Aston Villa player has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and skill in entering the penalty area when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has discussed favoring natural flank operators. The wide attackers play out wide weekly and can maintain possession effectively, challenge defenders, and arrive in the box to score.

In midfield behind the attackers, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a holding midfielder and a partner with attacking liberty to support offensive play.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with attacking alternatives for the number 10 role, with Kane likely to start up front.

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

There is an alternative approach all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel suggested it this week.

"With his club, he plays almost like a number eight or 10, so potentially in future we view him as a central midfielder," he said.

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

That has allowed him to take responsibility deeper 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 attacking midfielder and Kane as the center forward.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the World Cup, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.