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With six wins out of six, no goals conceded and tournament placement confirmed with matches remaining, Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel might claim he has made the right selection choices.

Nevertheless, in the lead-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he raised questions when he claimed that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the identical lineup.

"Presently, if we stick with the system, they cannot play.

"They can but not in the structure, not for the balance that we created and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We play at the moment with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker."

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 his team selections imply that Marcus Rashford and Arsenal's winger are his preferred options on the left and right flank respectively.

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

Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the national squad were defeated by Spain in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the stars have performed alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, tied three matches and lost three, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes.

Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions

Tuchel has employed a four-two-three-one setup that changes shape when England attack.

The Aston Villa player has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his impressive ball progression, ball-striking and capacity to penetrate the area when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has mentioned preferring natural flank operators. Saka and Gordon consistently operate in wide areas and can retain the ball skillfully, take their full-back on, and enter the area to finish.

In midfield behind the attackers, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and one with more license to join the forward movement.

What solutions exist for the trio?

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

Foden could feature as the central striker, which potentially could permit both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.

There is a potential solution all three could feature together and Tuchel suggested it this week.

"With his club, he operates similarly to a number eight or 10, so potentially in future 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, next to a more defensive number six.

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 international competition, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the name of balance.