England's star trio are unable to fit in the same lineup - does the manager have a point?
With six wins from six matches, an unbreached defense and tournament placement confirmed with matches remaining, England manager Thomas Tuchel can argue he has chosen wisely throughout qualification.
Yet, in the build-up to Thursday's Wembley encounter against Serbia, he initiated discussion when he stated that three of the nation's top talents - Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Harry Kane - cannot play in the equivalent formation.
"Currently, if we stick with the system, they won't fit together.
"They might but not in the structure, not maintaining equilibrium that we created and not for the structure that comes also with 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
England's creative talents have been utilized out wide for England in the past, but Tuchel's selections imply that the Barcelona loanee and the Gunners' star are his primary selections on the wing positions respectively.
So can Bellingham, Foden and Kane coexist in the lineup?
Former Three Lions boss apparently believed they could.
Bellingham, Foden and Kane featured in every England's seven fixtures at last summer's tournament in Germany, where the England team lost to Spain in the final.
In the 16 games the stars have performed simultaneously, England have triumphed 10 times, shared points three times and lost three, registering 36 scores and allowing 14 goals.
Analysis: Foden's versatility gives Tuchel options
Tuchel has played a 4-2-3-1 system that changes shape when England attack.
Morgan Rogers has been the key creative force because of his strong ball-carrying, shooting ability and capacity to penetrate the area when the number nine withdraws.
Tuchel has discussed favoring natural flank operators. The Arsenal and Newcastle stars play out wide weekly and can retain the ball skillfully, challenge defenders, and appear in scoring positions.
Supporting the attacking quartet, Tuchel employs a double pivot consisting of a holding midfielder and one with more license to support offensive play.
So how could Tuchel use these three players?
Foden and Bellingham would be competing with other creative midfielders for the attacking midfield position, with Kane probably featuring up front.
Foden could feature as the central striker, which potentially could allow both Bellingham and Foden to play at Kane's expense.
There is one way all three could coexist effectively and Tuchel hinted at it this week.
"For Man City, he functions as a box-to-box or creative role, so potentially in future we consider him as a central midfielder," he said.
Foden has been used in a more all-purpose midfield role this season.
That has enabled him to operate from deeper areas 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 center forward.
Irrespective of whether Tuchel opts to structure the side like this at the global tournament, what appears positive is his willingness to leave big players out in the interest of team harmony.