KUALA LUMPUR: Super League defending champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) is preparing early for the 2019 Asia Champions League (ACL) competition next season by signing up Brazilian defender Mauricio dos Santos Nascimento.
JDT, via its official Facebook page, the Southern Tigers announced that the Sao Paulo-born player played in several European clubs like Lazio, Spartak Moscow and Sporting Lisbon.
Mauricio is set to replace his compatriot Marcos Antonio who was released by JDT’s management.
Malaysia grabbed an automatic slot and one 2019 ACL qualifying round slot through the AFC club ranking in Nov 2017 which saw Malaysia ranked 13th.
JDT was selected to fill an automatic slot after winning the Super League for the fifth time in a row.