England boss Thomas Tuchel has stated that Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden cannot all play in the same team.
The Three Lions have already sealed their place at next year’s World Cup and will look to complete a perfect qualifying campaign when they host Serbia on Thursday and visit Albania on Sunday.
Foden has not been selected by Tuchel since March despite enjoying a resurgence at Manchester City in recent weeks.
Bellingham, meanwhile, has not played for England since June after shoulder surgery forced him to miss the start of Real Madrid’s season.
After an uninspiring start under Tuchel, England burst into life in September with a 5-0 defeat to Serbia, in a match in which Morgan Rogers, Noni Madueke and Anthony Gordon started behind Kane in a 4-2-3-1 system.
On Thursday, Tuchel told reporters he would be happy to leave big-name players out of his squad if they don’t fit into his system, and went a step further in an interview with TalkSPORT.
“At the moment, if we keep the structure, they can’t play,” Tuchel said of Kane, Bellingham and Foden.
“That is possible, but not because of the structure, not because of the balance that we have developed. Not because of the structure that also involves wingers who are specialists in their positions.”
“Right now we’re playing with a number six, a number eight, a number 10 and a number nine.”
Kane, Bellingham and Foden all started all seven of England’s matches at Euro 2024, as they reached the final, losing 2-1 to Spain.
Foden failed to score a goal and was roundly criticized, while Kane (three goals) and Bellingham (two goals, one assist) provided three each.
“There is a lot of agreement, especially in the number 10 position. When you think of Phil who can play there, you think of Jude, you think of Morgan Rogers, who played fantastic for us in that position,” Tuchel said of his options.
“You’ve got Cole Palmer, you’ve got Morgan Gibbs-White, so there’s a lot of players and there’s a chance we won’t take everyone.
“Not because we don’t like them, not because they don’t deserve it individually, but we will always do what is best for the team.
“We will always do what is best to win, we will always do what is best for the balance sheet and we will try to maintain clarity even if it means making difficult decisions.”
Tuchel said the five players mentioned above are unlikely to all make the squad when he names his squad, although he added that Foden’s versatility could work in his favour.
“If you are a unique player you can play both positions. I think he can play the nine and the 10. It gives him an advantage to compete for both positions.
“For Man City he plays almost like a number eight or 10, so maybe we will consider him as an eight in the coming months.
“But again, I see a very low percentage of us taking five No. 10s in a tournament. I don’t see how this will help.”
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