The San Jose Earthquakes signed their first designated player, Brazilian midfielder Deiberson Mauricio, on Monday. 

The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Geovanni is known as a versatile and creative attacking midfielder who can score. He started playing professionally in Brazil when he was 18. Since then, his career has spanned from Portugal to Spain to England.

Last year he played a crucial role in helping Hull City avoid relegation during the 2008-2009 season. Geovanni scored 13 goals in 65 games with the Tigers during his two year stint there, including a Goal of the Month strike in 2-1 victory against Arsenal.

San Jose is currently in sixth place in the Western Conference with 26 points and have played fewer games every team they trail. They are in ninth place overall, meaning they are the first team out of a playoff spot.

The main question is where he will play as San Jose now have a number of options going forward. These include Khari Stephenson who debuted with an assist and well talked about performance against Kansas City last week.

Despite a season ending injury to Andre Luiz, San Jose is deep going forward, with Arturo Alvarez, Bobby Convey, Sam Cronin, and Chris Wondolowski among others. Each has his own unique strengths and plays a different role in the offense.

There is some speculation about how Frank Yallop will deal with his new embarrassment of riches. One hint is that Bobby Convery started at left back last week, helping to shore up a sore defense.

The 30-year old Brazilian international may not have the name recognition of Thierry Henry or Rafael Marquez, but he might make the biggest MLS wide impact in the shortest amount of time. San Jose need to make a playoff push while the Red Bulls appear to be sitting pretty in fourth place overall.

Only time will tell how the latest foreign star adapts to the confines and quirks of Major League Soccer.

Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Source: Click Here