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Having secured six victories out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement confirmed with matches remaining, national team coach Thomas Tuchel might claim he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Yet, in the preparation for Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he raised questions when he stated that three of the country's best players - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the equivalent formation.

"Currently, if we keep the structure, they are unable to feature.

"They can but not in the structure, not preserving harmony that we created and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We presently employ with specific numbered positions."

From certain starters to fighting for spots

Foden and Bellingham have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but the manager's choices indicate that Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wing positions respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven fixtures at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the national squad lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the three have featured alongside each other, England have secured 10 victories, shared points three times and suffered three losses, registering 36 scores and conceding 14.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

Tuchel has employed a four-two-three-one setup that transforms formation when England attack.

The Aston Villa player has been the main number 10 because of his strong ball-carrying, ball-striking and skill in entering the penalty area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring natural flank operators. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can retain the ball skillfully, challenge defenders, and enter the area to finish.

Behind this front four, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and a partner with attacking liberty to join the forward movement.

So how could Tuchel use these three players?

Foden and Bellingham would be vying against other creative midfielders for the attacking midfield position, with Kane expected to lead up front.

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

There is one way all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel hinted at it this week.

"At Manchester City, he operates similarly to a number eight or 10, so potentially in future we view him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season.

That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could categorize him as the number eight, alongside a holding midfielder.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the center forward.

No matter whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the global tournament, what bodes well is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.