Team needs: 3 more moves Barcelona should make in the transfer window

Not even the presence of the greatest attacking trio known to man can mitigate the need to be active in the transfer market.

Though Barcelona's squad requires little in the way of significant turnover, the club's front office has made a concerted effort to plug minor holes and prepare for the future with a quartet of moves thus far.

Samuel Umtiti, Lucas Digne, Denis Suarez, and Andre Gomes have all pulled on the iconic Blaugrana kit this summer, with the signings signalling a clear focus on the long-term health of the Spanish side; at 23, Digne is the group's elder statesman.

And yet, further activity is expected in the coming weeks. Here are three more moves Barcelona should make in the summer transfer window:

Find a backup for Luis Suarez

Let's get this out of the way right off the top: Barcelona doesn't need another striker. The three-headed demon of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar - dubbed MSN - combined to bag an absurd 90 goals in La Liga last season, more than every other team in the league (except for Real Madrid) could muster as a whole. Some sides can't improve in certain areas, simply because they already boast the most devastating talent available.

So no, the Blaugrana don't need another forward. What they need is someone who can afford Suarez some rest every now and again - something that was in short supply for the Uruguayan last year.

The attacking triumvirate combined to play 8937 minutes in La Liga in 2015-16. Suarez led the side, clocking in at 3150. Among all outfield players in Spain, that was good enough for sixth overall. (Neymar recorded 3057 minutes, second on the team, and had he not missed roughly two months with a knee injury, Messi would have joined them in eclipsing the 3000-minute mark).

But in Munir El Haddadi and the re-signed Denis Suarez, Barca has options when Messi or Neymar needs a day off - even if the former Villarreal youngster thrived in more of a midfield role last season.

That's not a luxury Luis Enrique has when it comes to his centre-forward. Even if he wasn't asked to put in so much defensive work, harrying opposing defenders and being the first wave of Barcelona's defensive press, Suarez would require some time off to ensure that come the end of the campaign - the time when the club expects to be fighting for the Champions League crown - he is in top shape and not worn down after the long slog of the season.

The trouble for Barca, of course, is finding someone who is both a capable replacement and also content with playing second fiddle. Would Kevin Gameiro, who continues to be linked with a switch to the Camp Nou, be happy trading in his starring role with Sevilla for a place on the bench?

Potential targets: Kevin Gameiro (Sevilla), Luciano Vietto (Atletico Madrid)

Replace Dani Alves

An institution at Barcelona since joining the club from Sevilla in 2008, eccentric Brazilian right-back Dani Alves left the Camp Nou this summer for Juventus, admitting that he was in need of a "new challenge" in his trophy-laden career.

At the time, Barcelona technical director Robert Fernandez was quick to extol the virtues of the in-house replacements for the marauding 33-year-old.

“At right-back we have confidence in Aleix Vidal, he was signed for that reason. We also have Sergi Roberto," he said of Alves' departure.

And he's not wrong. Vidal, equally adventurous down the right flank, arrived at Barcelona last summer after a marvellous season at Sevilla. Forced to wait six months to make his Blaugrana debut due to the club's transfer ban, he showed promising signs that he could be the long-term replacement for Alves.

Barring another signing, he's expected to begin the 2016-17 campaign as the first-choice right-back.

But what of Sergi Roberto? Supremely versatile, the 24-year-old Spaniard can operate almost anywhere on the pitch, and pinning him exclusively to a right-back role - and potentially a backup one at that - seems a waste of someone who showed last season that can offer plenty to the side when called upon.

Perhaps Barcelona would be best served by replacing Alves, which would provide both direct competition for Vidal and allow Roberto to continue thriving in his role as the ultimate Swiss Army Knife.

Potential targets: Hector Bellerin (Arsenal), Cedric Soares (Southampton)

Send some dead weight packing

With the additions of Umtiti, Digne, Suarez and Gomes, some corresponding subtractions are expected.

While the club obviously has the financial means to house hefty contracts that contribute little on the pitch, retaining too many players who fit that description is clearly not a healthy business model - even if you boast some of world football's deepest pockets.

Thomas Vermaelen's extensive injury history makes him most expendable, though Jeremy Mathieu would likely garner a more significant transfer fee given that he can actually stay fit for more than a week. Adriano is reportedly nearing an exit as well.

But the biggest question mark hangs over the head of Arda Turan. The Turkish midfielder seemed a curious signing when he joined Barcelona last year for an initial €34 million - plus a potential €7 million in add-ons - and talk has been incessant this summer that the club's brass is looking to offload the bearded 29-year-old.

And that was before the opulent signing of Gomes, who figures to slot in above Turan in the midfield pecking order.

Likely to spend a significant portion of the upcoming season stapled to the bench while collecting a handsome wage packet, Barca may benefit from cutting its losses and allowing products of its vaunted academy to assume Turan's role.