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With six wins out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, national team coach Thomas Tuchel might claim he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.

However, 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 - are unable to feature in the equivalent formation.

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

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

From automatic picks to contested places

England's creative talents have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections imply that the Barcelona loanee and the Gunners' star are his primary selections on the wide areas respectively.

So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?

Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate's side lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the trio have played together, England have secured 10 victories, tied three matches and lost three, netting 36 goals and conceding 14.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

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 impressive ball progression, shooting ability and ability to attack the box when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring dedicated wide players. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can maintain possession effectively, engage in one-on-one situations, and arrive in the box to score.

Behind this front four, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a holding midfielder and a partner with attacking liberty to support offensive play.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with attacking alternatives for the number 10 role, with Kane probably featuring up front.

Foden could operate as the central striker, which theoretically could enable both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.

There is one way all three could feature together and Tuchel alluded to it this week.

"For Man City, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so maybe during the next months we view him as a box-to-box player," he said.

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

That has permitted him to contribute from midfield and could categorize him as the central midfielder, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the nine.

No matter whether Tuchel chooses to configure the team like this at the international competition, what bodes well is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.