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With six wins out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement secured with two group games to spare, national team coach Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

Nevertheless, in the lead-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he raised questions when he said that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the equivalent formation.

"Presently, if we stick with the system, they won't fit together.

"They might but not in the structure, not for the balance that we established and not in this formation that also includes wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We play at the moment with specific numbered positions."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but the manager's choices suggest that the Manchester United forward and the Gunners' star are his first choices on the left and right flank respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate evidently thought it possible.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where Southgate's side were defeated by Spain in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the stars have performed alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and been defeated three times, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that changes shape when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his impressive ball progression, ball-striking and skill in entering the penalty area when the number nine withdraws.

Tuchel has discussed favoring natural flank operators. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can maintain possession effectively, engage in one-on-one situations, and enter the area to finish.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a holding midfielder and one with more license to contribute to the attack.

Potential configurations for England's stars

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

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

There is a potential solution all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel alluded to it this week.

"At Manchester City, he plays almost like a box-to-box or creative role, so maybe during the next months we consider him as a number eight," 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 number eight, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the creative force and Kane as the nine.

No matter whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the World Cup, what appears positive is his readiness to exclude star names in the name of balance.