🔗 Share this article Kane, Bellingham and Foden can't operate simultaneously - is Tuchel right? Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden have been essential components for England over the recent half-decade Having secured six victories out of six, zero goals allowed and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel might claim he has made the right selection choices. Yet, in the build-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he sparked a debate when he stated 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 maintain the formation, they cannot play. "They can but not with current tactics, not preserving harmony that we developed and not in this formation that also includes wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We currently utilize with defensive, central, attacking midfielders and striker." From certain starters to fighting for spots The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections indicate that the Barcelona loanee and the Gunners' star are his primary selections on the left and right flank respectively. The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane operate simultaneously? The previous England manager evidently thought it possible. Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven matches at last summer's tournament in Germany, where Southgate's side lost to Spain in the final. In the 16 matches the stars have performed simultaneously, England have won 10, shared points three times and lost three, scoring 36 times and letting in 14 strikes. Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions Tuchel has employed a four-two-three-one setup that transforms formation when England attack. Morgan Rogers has been the key creative force because of his impressive ball progression, shooting ability and capacity to penetrate the area when the striker drops deep. Tuchel has discussed favoring specialist wingers. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars consistently operate in wide areas and can retain the ball skillfully, take their full-back on, and arrive in the box to score. Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel plays with a midfield two consisting of one defensively strict player and another with greater freedom to support offensive play. 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 feature as the central striker, which in theory could enable both Bellingham and Foden to operate without the captain. There is one way all three could feature together and Tuchel hinted at it this week. "At Manchester City, he functions as a central or attacking midfielder, so potentially in future we view him as a number eight," he said. Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season. That has allowed him to take responsibility deeper and could categorize him as the central midfielder, next to a more defensive number six. This would then permit Bellingham to feature as the creative force and Kane as the nine. Irrespective of whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the global tournament, what bodes well is his preparedness to omit established stars in the name of balance.