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With six wins from six matches, an unbreached defense and World Cup qualification secured with two group games to spare, national team coach Thomas Tuchel might claim he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Yet, in the lead-up to Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he said that three of the country's best players - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the equivalent formation.

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

"They can but not with current tactics, not for the balance that we developed and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We currently utilize with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."

From certain starters to fighting for spots

The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been used in wide positions for England in the past, but his team selections suggest that Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka are his preferred options on the wide areas respectively.

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

The previous England manager apparently believed they could.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where the national squad fell to the Spanish in the final.

In the 16 matches the three have featured alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and lost three, netting 36 goals and conceding 14.

Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives

Tuchel has played a 4-2-3-1 system that changes shape when England attack.

The Aston Villa player has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his excellent dribbling, ball-striking and capacity to penetrate the area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring specialist wingers. The wide attackers regularly feature on the wings and can hold the ball well, take their full-back on, and enter the area to finish.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of one defensively strict player and another with greater freedom to contribute to the attack.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with attacking alternatives for the attacking midfield position, with Kane probably featuring up front.

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

There is one way all three could play in this system and Tuchel suggested it this week.

"For Man City, he functions as a central or attacking midfielder, so perhaps in coming months we consider him as a central midfielder," he said.

Foden has been utilized as a flexible midfielder this season.

That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could categorize him as the central midfielder, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the number 10 and Kane as the center forward.

Regardless of if Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the global tournament, what seems encouraging is his preparedness to omit established stars in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.