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With six wins out of six, an unbreached defense and a World Cup spot confirmed with matches remaining, Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel might claim he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Nevertheless, in the lead-up to Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he raised questions when he said that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the same team.

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

"They can but not within this system, not maintaining equilibrium that we established and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

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 suggest that the Barcelona loanee and Bukayo Saka are his preferred options on the wide areas respectively.

The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?

Former Three Lions boss apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where the England team lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the stars have performed alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and lost three, netting 36 goals and allowing 14 goals.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

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

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his impressive ball progression, strike quality and capacity to penetrate the area when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring natural flank operators. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars regularly feature on the wings and can hold the ball well, take their full-back on, and arrive in the box to score.

Behind this front four, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of one defensively strict player and another with greater freedom to contribute to the attack.

Potential configurations for England's stars

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

Foden could feature as the main forward, which in theory could permit both Bellingham and Foden to operate without the captain.

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

"With his club, he plays almost like a number eight or 10, so maybe during the next months we consider him as a box-to-box player," 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 advanced playmaker, next to a more defensive number six.

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

Regardless of if Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the global tournament, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.