England's upcoming friendlies with the Netherlands and Italy give Gareth Southgate a vital chance to experiment before he draws up his World Cup squad for the tournament in Russia, and the Three Lions gaffer must take that opportunity with both hands.

Indeed, he's clearly picked an experimental squad with the likes of James Tarkowski and Alfie Mawson involved for the very first time, and Oranje and Azzurri represent decent enough opposition to really test Southgate's various potential game-plans against.

But how can Southgate take full advantage of this opportunity? What various forms should this England squad take on the pitch to adequately prepare for the tournament in Russia? Which setups require further testing before they're used at the World Cup?

While the players picked remain largely interchangeable, Football FanCast lay out four formations Southgate must attempt at some point during the current international break - and then give you the chance to tell us your favourite.

England's attempts to adopt 4-2-3-1 at the last World Cup failed spectacularly, but it feels much less a case of square pegs being shoved into round holes this time around with conventional options in every position.

Most pivotal of those are the front four, with the formation allowing all of England's most potent goalscoring entities on the pitch at the same time; Marcus Rashford, Dele Alli, Raheem Sterling and Jamie Vardy - the latter being replaced by Harry Kane when the tournament in Russia comes around.

And in comparison to the last World Cup when Steven Gerrard looked a little lost in deep midfield, Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson offer adequate defensive protection behind that flying front four.

Southgate appears determined to use a three-man defence at least once during the World Cup and 3-4-3 appears the likeliest setup, with Alli and Sterling either side of the central striker.

England certainly have the wide men for it in the likes of Kyle Walker, Ashley Young, Kieran Trippier and Danny Rose, all of whom offer fantastic dynamism and attacking threat and have lined up in this system on at least a handful of occasions since Euro 2016.

The real concerns, however, are in the more defensive-minded positions. Southgate is yet to settle on his perfect back three, but Joe Gomez could proved an inspired solution alongside Harry Maguire and John Stones. He's quick and versatile enough to defend one-on-one situations and shares their ability to play out of the back.

Perhaps the key though is the two men in front of them. Henderson and Dier are practically interchangeable as midfield enforcers, but the question for Southgate is whether England can afford a more creative player like Jack Wilshere alongside them without leaving the engine room too open.

Two of the Premier League's top three sides have stuck with 4-3-3 almost religiously this season - Manchester City and Liverpool - and while England may lack creative players at the level of Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva, they do have a few likeminded midfielders who fill the gap between No.10s and No.8s.

In fact, Adam Lallana and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have both filled those offensive-minded central midfield berths in front of Henderson at Liverpool this season and the familiarity in the engine room would give Southgate a starting point to build the rest of the system around.

England are luxury to the crucial pace and positional flexibility in attack too, not to mention the attacking full-backs to provide the width when the forwards tuck inside.

But of course, City and Liverpool's success using this system has hinged on their ability to press high and win the ball back. International football probably doesn't allow enough time on the training pitch for Southgate to really drill his team on a similar approach.

While England do boast pace and goal threat in wide departments, depth in that area isn't the strongest and the most creative members of this Three Lions squad seemingly prefers more central positions, namely the likes of Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Dele Alli and Jack Wilshere.

So why not try and get as many of those on the pitch as possible in a bid to play to England's strengths? A diamond would be an interesting option, one that Hodgson used briefly with good success in Euro 2016 qualifying, and the Three Lions still have the players for it - in addition to the aforementioned midfielders, all of the full-backs are more than capable of bombing forward to provide the width.

Likewise, it will allow for two central strikers which, especially when Kane is fit again, could give England a distinct advantage through their ability to play direct at the World Cup. How many countries at the tournament will boast a front two as potent and physical as Kane and Vardy?

So, England fans, which formation would you like to see used most against the Netherlands and Italy? Let us know by voting below!