Kane, Bellingham and Foden are unable to operate simultaneously - is Tuchel right?

After achieving six consecutive triumphs from six matches, an unbreached defense and tournament placement confirmed with matches remaining, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.

Nevertheless, in the lead-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he stated that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the identical lineup.

"At the moment, if we keep the structure, they won't fit together.

"They can but not within this system, not preserving harmony that we created and not within the framework that incorporates wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker."

From certain starters to fighting for spots

Foden and Bellingham have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but the manager's choices suggest that Marcus Rashford and Arsenal's winger are his first choices on the wide areas respectively.

The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?

Former Three Lions boss evidently thought it possible.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the national squad fell to the Spanish in the final.

In the 16 fixtures the three have featured together, England have won 10, tied three matches and lost three, registering 36 scores and conceding 14.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that changes shape when England attack.

The Aston Villa player has been the key creative force because of his excellent dribbling, ball-striking and skill in entering the penalty area when the forward retreats.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars 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 utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and a partner with attacking liberty 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 play as the main forward, which potentially could enable both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.

There is a potential solution all three could play in this system and Tuchel hinted at it this week.

"For Man City, he plays almost like a central or attacking midfielder, so potentially in future we view 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 number eight, paired with a defensive anchor.

This would then allow Bellingham to play as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the nine.

Irrespective of whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the interest of team harmony.