Orlando City confirm Baptista signing

Orlando City have confirmed the signing of former Brazil international Julio Baptista.

The 34-year-old had been strongly linked with a move to the MLS franchise, and his former Sao Paulo team-mate Kaka, who also plays for Orlando, welcomed him to the club via Twitter on Tuesday.

Baptista has represented the likes of Real Madrid, Arsenal and Sevilla during his career and the forward has been without a club since leaving Brazilian side Cruzeiro in December.

“Julio is a strong, physical and tactical player who will provide us with more depth and options in the forward positions,” head coach Adrian Heath told Orlando’s official website.

“We enjoyed having him train with us earlier this month, and are very pleased with the decision to bring him on board full time.”

Orlando City are third in the Eastern Conference with five points after three rounds, following Friday’s 1-0 win at New York City.