Orlando City SC have finally secured their first signing of the off-season after the Lions selected former New England Revolution full back Kevin Alston in stage two of the MLS Re-Entry Draft.

The 27-year-old Washington D.C. native joins Adrian Heath’s side to add some much needed competition to the back line after racking up 155 Major League Soccer appearances for the Revs in a career at Gillette Stadium that spanned six years.

Set to do battle with Rafael Ramos and Tyler Turner for the starting berth at right back in City’s starting eleven in 2016, Lions fans can now breathe a sigh of relief that under the new Armando Carneiro regime, much-needed reinforcements have finally started to arrive.

Similar in stature to Ramos standing just one inch taller than the Portuguese at 5 ft 8 in, Alston is a very attack-minded full back who on paper, looks well suited to succeeding in City’s expansive style of play.

In terms of who could arrive next, many are expecting Benfica B goalkeeper Thierry Graca to arrive as well, having performed for the Lions in their end-of-season friendly against Flamengo but it remains a possibility that he could be signing for Anthony Pulis’ Orlando City B.

Elsewhere in the second stage of the MLS Re-Entry Draft, the only other completed transfer involved MLS Cup Champions Portland Timbers who picked up Jamaican international Jermaine Taylor after his Houston Dynamo deal came to an end following the 2015 campaign.

All the best to Kevin Alston in his City career and you can welcome the experienced defender on Twitter right now using his handle @KAlston30.

Here’s what Lions fans are making of Alston’s arrival on social media…

Alston does bring experience. Don't think he unseats Ramos tho

— Chris (@OrlandoCountySC) December 17, 2015

Another pickup for the club, welcome to the family @KAlston30 ! Hope you like #Purple! 🙂

— daguru (@daguru9) December 17, 2015

Kevin Alston, the newest Orlando City player. A lot of MLS experience there.

— City Soccer Talk (@CitySoccerTalk) December 17, 2015