Three Lions' top talents can't operate simultaneously - does the manager have a point?
With six wins in six games, zero goals allowed and a World Cup spot secured with two group games to spare, Three Lions boss Thomas Tuchel can argue he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.
However, in the build-up to Thursday's home game against Serbia, he raised questions when he claimed that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - struggle to perform in the same team.
"Currently, if we keep the structure, they are unable to feature.
"It's possible but not in the structure, not for the balance that we developed and not for the structure that comes also with wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."
From guaranteed positions to competitive roles
England's creative talents have been deployed on the flanks for England in the past, but the manager's choices imply that the Manchester United forward and Arsenal's winger are his primary selections on the left and right flank respectively.
So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?
The previous England manager evidently thought it possible.
Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven fixtures at Euro 2024 in Germany, where Southgate's side fell to the Spanish in the final.
In the 16 matches the three have featured simultaneously, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and been defeated three times, scoring 36 times and conceding 14.
Tactical insight: Foden's flexibility provides alternatives
Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that transforms formation when England attack.
The young midfielder has been the key creative force because of his impressive ball progression, strike quality and ability to attack the box when the forward retreats.
Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. Saka and Gordon consistently operate in wide areas and can maintain possession effectively, take their full-back on, and arrive in the box to score.
Behind this front four, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of one defensively strict player and one with more license to support offensive play.
Potential configurations for England's stars
Foden and Bellingham would be competing with attacking alternatives for the attacking midfield position, with Kane likely to start up front.
Foden could feature as the number nine, which theoretically could permit both Bellingham and Foden to feature instead of Kane.
There is a potential solution 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 potentially in future we consider him as a number eight," 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 advanced playmaker, alongside a holding midfielder.
This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the creative force and Kane as the center forward.
No matter whether Tuchel decides to set England up like this at the international competition, what appears positive is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.