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Having secured six victories out of six, an unbreached defense and World Cup qualification secured with two group games to spare, England manager Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has made the right selection choices.

Yet, in the preparation for Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he raised questions when he stated that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the identical lineup.

"At the moment, if we maintain the formation, they won't fit together.

"It's possible but not with current tactics, not for the balance that we created and not within the framework 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 automatic picks to contested places

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections indicate that Marcus Rashford and Arsenal's winger are his primary selections on the wing positions respectively.

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

Gareth Southgate apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven games at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate's side were defeated by Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the stars have performed alongside each other, England have won 10, shared points three times and been defeated three times, scoring 36 times and letting in 14 strikes.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has employed a four-two-three-one setup that changes shape when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his strong ball-carrying, ball-striking and ability to attack the box when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can retain the ball skillfully, take their full-back on, and appear in scoring positions.

Behind this front four, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and one with more license to contribute to the attack.

So how could Tuchel use these three players?

Foden and Bellingham would be competing with Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze for the creative hub, with Kane expected to lead up front.

Foden could feature as the central striker, which theoretically could allow both Bellingham and Foden to operate without the captain.

There is one way all three could feature together and Tuchel suggested it this week.

"For Man City, he plays almost like a number eight or 10, so maybe during the next months we consider him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been utilized as a flexible midfielder this season.

That has allowed him to take responsibility deeper and could make him an option as the central midfielder, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the number 10 and Kane as the nine.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel chooses to configure the team like this at the international competition, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the name of balance.