Kane, Bellingham and Foden are unable to play together - does the manager have a point?
With six wins from six matches, zero goals allowed and World Cup qualification assured before the final rounds, England manager Thomas Tuchel can argue he has got all of his big qualifying decisions correct.
Nevertheless, in the preparation for Thursday's home game against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he stated that three of the England's elite footballers - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - are unable to feature in the identical lineup.
"Presently, if we keep the structure, they won't fit together.
"It's possible but not within this system, not preserving harmony that we created and not within the framework that also includes wingers who are highly specialized in their positions. We play at the moment with a six, eight, a 10 and a nine."
From automatic picks to contested places
The Manchester City and Real Madrid stars have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections suggest that Marcus Rashford and the Gunners' star are his primary selections on the wing positions respectively.
The question remains whether Bellingham, Foden and Kane play together?
Gareth Southgate certainly thought so.
Bellingham, Foden and Kane started all of England's seven fixtures at the European Championship in Germany, where Southgate's side fell to the Spanish in the final.
In the 16 matches the three have featured together, England have won 10, tied three matches and been defeated three times, registering 36 scores and allowing 14 goals.
Strategic view: Versatile Foden offers solutions
Tuchel has utilized a 4-2-3-1 formation that changes shape when England attack.
The young midfielder has been the primary attacking midfielder because of his impressive ball progression, shooting ability and ability to attack the box when the forward retreats.
Tuchel has mentioned preferring specialist wingers. Saka and Gordon play out wide weekly and can retain the ball skillfully, 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 support offensive play.
Potential configurations for England's stars
Foden and Bellingham would be competing with other creative midfielders for the number 10 role, with Kane probably featuring up front.
Foden could feature as the number nine, which in theory could allow both Bellingham and Foden to operate without the captain.
There is a potential solution all three could play in this system and Tuchel alluded to it this week.
"At Manchester City, he operates similarly to a central or attacking midfielder, so maybe during the next months we view him as a box-to-box player," he said.
Foden has been deployed in a versatile central position this season.
That has allowed him to take responsibility deeper and could categorize him as the central midfielder, alongside a holding midfielder.
This would then enable Bellingham to operate as the attacking midfielder and Kane as the center forward.
Regardless of if Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the World Cup, what seems encouraging is his readiness to exclude star names in the pursuit of tactical equilibrium.
