Three Lions' top talents are unable to play together - does the manager have a point?

Having secured six victories in six games, no goals conceded and a World Cup spot secured with two group games to spare, England manager Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has made the right selection choices.

However, in the lead-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he raised questions when he stated that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the identical lineup.

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

"They might but not within this system, not for the balance that we developed and not in this formation that also includes wingers who are highly specialized 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 Tuchel's selections indicate that the Manchester United forward and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wide areas respectively.

The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?

The previous England manager certainly thought so.

Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where the England team lost to Spain in the final.

In the 16 matches the trio have played simultaneously, England have won 10, shared points three times and been defeated three times, registering 36 scores and allowing 14 goals.

Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options

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

Morgan Rogers has been the main number 10 because of his excellent dribbling, ball-striking and skill in entering the penalty area when the striker drops deep.

Tuchel has spoken about preferring specialist wingers. Saka and Gordon regularly feature on the wings and can hold the ball well, engage in one-on-one situations, and arrive in the box to score.

Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a holding midfielder and one with more license to join the forward movement.

What solutions exist for the trio?

Foden and Bellingham would be battling with other creative midfielders for the number 10 role, with Kane expected to lead up front.

Foden could operate as the main forward, which theoretically could enable both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.

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

"With his club, he plays almost like a central or attacking midfielder, so perhaps in coming months we regard him as a central midfielder," 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 center forward.

Regardless of if Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the interest of team harmony.