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Having secured six victories out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Nevertheless, in the preparation for Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he claimed that three of the country's best players - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the equivalent formation.

"Currently, if we stick with the system, they are unable to feature.

"It's possible but not with current tactics, not maintaining equilibrium that we developed and not for the structure that incorporates wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From guaranteed positions to competitive roles

England's creative talents have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections imply that the Barcelona loanee and Arsenal's winger are his primary selections on the wide areas respectively.

But can Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

Former Three Lions boss evidently thought it possible.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven fixtures at last summer's tournament in Germany, where the national squad lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 games the trio have played alongside each other, England have won 10, drawn three and been defeated three times, registering 36 scores and allowing 14 goals.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that alters structure when England attack.

The young midfielder has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, strike quality and skill in entering the penalty area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The wide attackers consistently operate in wide areas and can maintain possession effectively, take their full-back on, and appear in scoring positions.

Behind this front four, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders 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 attacking alternatives for the number 10 role, with Kane likely to start up front.

Foden could play as the main forward, which potentially could allow 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 functions as a number eight or 10, so perhaps in coming months we regard him as a box-to-box player," he said.

Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season.

That has allowed him to take responsibility deeper and could make him an option as the advanced playmaker, alongside a holding midfielder.

This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the creative force and Kane as the striker.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel chooses to configure the team like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his preparedness to omit established stars in the name of balance.