England's star trio struggle to operate simultaneously - does the manager have a point?
Having secured six victories out of six, an unbreached defense and tournament placement secured with two group games to spare, England manager Thomas Tuchel could suggest he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.
Yet, 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 - struggle to perform in the identical lineup.
"Presently, if we maintain the formation, they are unable to feature.
"It's possible but not within this system, not for the balance that we created and not in this formation that comes also with wingers who are essentially experts in their positions. We currently utilize with specific numbered positions."
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 his team selections imply that Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka are his first choices on the wide areas respectively.
The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously?
The previous England manager certainly thought so.
Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate's side lost to Spain in the final.
In the 16 matches the stars have performed together, England have won 10, shared points three times and suffered three losses, registering 36 scores and letting in 14 strikes.
Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options
Tuchel has played a 4-2-3-1 system that transforms formation when England attack.
Morgan Rogers has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his impressive ball progression, strike quality and capacity to penetrate the area when the forward retreats.
Tuchel has spoken about preferring dedicated wide players. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can hold the ball well, take their full-back on, and enter the area to finish.
Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel utilizes two central midfielders consisting of a disciplined defensive presence and a partner with attacking liberty to support offensive play.
So how could Tuchel use these three players?
Foden and Bellingham would be battling with Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze for the number 10 role, with Kane probably featuring up front.
Foden could play as the central striker, which theoretically could permit both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.
There is one way all three could play in this system and Tuchel alluded to it this week.
"With his club, he plays almost like a number eight or 10, so perhaps in coming months we view 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 make him an option as the advanced playmaker, paired with a defensive anchor.
This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the nine.
Irrespective of whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the international competition, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the name of balance.
