🔗 Share this article Three Lions' top talents struggle to play together - does the manager have a point? Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden have been crucial figures for England over the past five years Having secured six victories from six matches, no goals conceded and tournament placement secured with two group games to spare, national team coach Thomas Tuchel might claim he has made the right selection choices. However, in the preparation for Thursday's home game against Serbia, he raised questions when he said that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the same team. "At the moment, if we keep the structure, they cannot play. "It's possible but not with current tactics, not preserving harmony that we created and not for the structure that incorporates wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We presently employ with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker." From guaranteed positions to competitive roles The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections imply that Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wide areas respectively. So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously? The previous England manager evidently thought it possible. Bellingham, Foden and Kane were selected for each England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where the national squad lost to Spain in the final. In the 16 fixtures the stars have performed together, England have secured 10 victories, drawn three and suffered three losses, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes. Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that alters structure when England attack. Morgan Rogers has been the key creative force because of his strong ball-carrying, strike quality and capacity to penetrate the area when the number nine withdraws. Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can hold the ball well, challenge defenders, and appear in scoring positions. Behind this front four, Tuchel plays with a midfield two consisting of one defensively strict player and another with greater freedom to contribute to the attack. Potential configurations for England's stars Foden and Bellingham would be battling with Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze for the creative hub, with Kane likely to start up front. Foden could play as the number nine, which theoretically could permit both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane. There is an alternative approach all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel suggested it this week. "At Manchester City, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so perhaps in coming months we view him as a box-to-box player," he said. Foden has been utilized as a flexible midfielder this season. That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could position him as the central midfielder, next to a more defensive number six. This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the creative force and Kane as the striker. No matter whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his preparedness to omit established stars in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.