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With six wins in six games, zero goals allowed and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel can argue he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Yet, in the build-up to Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he said that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the equivalent formation.

"At the moment, if we maintain the formation, they cannot play.

"They can but not in the structure, not for the balance that we developed and not for the structure that comes also with wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker."

From certain starters to fighting for spots

Foden and Bellingham have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but the manager's choices imply that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the left and right flank respectively.

The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate evidently thought it possible.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven matches at the European Championship in Germany, where the national squad lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the three have featured alongside each other, England have won 10, shared points three times and suffered three losses, 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 key creative force because of his impressive ball progression, ball-striking and ability to attack the box when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can maintain possession effectively, engage in one-on-one situations, and arrive in the box to score.

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

So how could Tuchel use these three players?

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

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

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

"At Manchester City, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so potentially in future we consider him as a number eight," he said.

Foden has been utilized as a flexible midfielder this season.

That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could position him as the advanced playmaker, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the number 10 and Kane as the striker.

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