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Having secured six victories in six games, an unbreached defense and World Cup qualification assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

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

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

"They might but not with current tactics, not maintaining equilibrium that we developed and not for the structure that also includes wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We presently employ with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From automatic picks to contested places

England's creative talents have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but the manager's choices imply that Marcus Rashford and the Gunners' star are his first choices on the wide areas respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Gareth Southgate apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven matches at the European Championship in Germany, where the England team lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the stars have performed alongside each other, England have secured 10 victories, drawn three and been defeated three times, netting 36 goals and allowing 14 goals.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

Tuchel has employed a four-two-three-one setup that alters structure when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and capacity to penetrate the area when the number nine withdraws.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. The wide attackers regularly feature on the wings and can maintain possession effectively, take their full-back on, and arrive in the box to score.

Behind this front four, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a holding midfielder and another with greater freedom 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 number 10 role, with Kane probably featuring up front.

Foden could play as the number nine, 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.

"At Manchester City, he functions as a number eight or 10, so perhaps in coming months we view him as a number eight," he said.

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

That has permitted him to contribute from midfield and could position him as the advanced playmaker, next to a more defensive number six.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the creative force and Kane as the nine.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the World Cup, what bodes well is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.