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Having secured six victories out of six, no goals conceded and a World Cup spot assured before the final rounds, national team coach Thomas Tuchel can argue he has made the right selection choices.

Nevertheless, in the preparation for Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he said that three of the country's best players - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the same team.

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

"They can but not with current tactics, not maintaining equilibrium that we created and not within the framework that incorporates wingers who are highly specialized in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but the manager's choices indicate that Marcus Rashford and the Gunners' star are his preferred options on the wing positions respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?

The previous England manager certainly thought so.

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

In the 16 matches the trio have played together, England have secured 10 victories, drawn three and been defeated three times, netting 36 goals and conceding 14.

Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives

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, strike quality and ability to attack the box when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring dedicated wide players. Saka and Gordon consistently operate in wide areas and can hold the ball well, take their full-back on, and appear in scoring positions.

Behind this front four, Tuchel plays with a midfield two consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and another with greater freedom to support offensive play.

What solutions exist for the trio?

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

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

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

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

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

That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could make him an option as the central midfielder, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the number 10 and Kane as the center forward.

Regardless of if Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the global tournament, what bodes well is his willingness to leave big players out in the interest of team harmony.