Three Lions' top talents struggle to play together - does the manager have a point?
Having secured six victories from six matches, no goals conceded and tournament placement assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel might claim he has made the right selection choices.
Yet, in the lead-up to Thursday's domestic match against Serbia, he raised questions 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.
"Currently, if we keep the structure, they won't fit together.
"They can but not in the structure, not preserving harmony that we created and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are like specialists in their positions. We play at the moment with specific numbered positions."
From automatic picks to contested places
England's creative talents have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but the manager's choices indicate that the Barcelona loanee and the Gunners' star are his first choices on the wing positions respectively.
So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?
Former Three Lions boss evidently thought it possible.
Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven matches at Euro 2024 in Germany, where the national squad lost to Spain in the final.
In the 16 games the trio have played alongside each other, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and been defeated three times, scoring 36 times and letting in 14 strikes.
Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options
Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that alters structure when England attack.
The Aston Villa player has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his excellent dribbling, shooting ability and skill in entering the penalty area when the number nine withdraws.
Tuchel has mentioned preferring dedicated wide players. Saka and Gordon play out wide weekly and can hold the ball well, take their full-back on, and arrive in the box to score.
In midfield behind the attackers, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of one defensively strict player and one with more license to join the forward movement.
What solutions exist for the trio?
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 central striker, which in theory could enable both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.
There is one way all three could play in this system and Tuchel suggested it this week.
"At Manchester City, he functions as a central or attacking midfielder, so potentially in future we consider him as a central midfielder," he said.
Foden has been deployed in a versatile central position this season.
That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas and could position him as the number eight, paired with a defensive anchor.
This would then allow Bellingham to play as the creative force and Kane as the nine.
No matter whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the World Cup, what bodes well is his readiness to exclude star names in the interest of team harmony.