Until now, he was little more than an "if" around MLS circles -- a world-class attacker Toronto FC supporters and media talked about with both cautious optimism and uncertainty.

Still distrustful from the Diego Forlan fiasco this past season, TFC supporters have been patiently standing by, waiting for MLSE head honcho Tim Leiweke -- The Ultimate Entertainer, as past employees refer to him -- to produce his final act.

On Friday, Leiweke and the Reds provided fans with an appetizer.

Gilberto Oliveira Souza Junior, a 24-year-old Brazilian striker, was unveiled at the Air Canada Centre as Toronto's newest Designated Player, spurring little more than a golf clap.

"I am very excited to join Toronto FC and MLS," Gilberto said. "There is a lot of opportunity here, both with this side and the league and I am excited to help grow Major League Soccer with my fellow Brazilians back home. This is a great city with a great quality of life and I look forward to winning titles here."

But he's poised to complement a much bigger name, someone Leiweke claimed this off-season will be one of the biggest signings in league history.

The Toronto Sun has learned Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe will join Toronto FC next season in what's sure to be the biggest off-season move MLS-wide -- both financially and tactically.

The Reds are believed to be dropping as much as $10 million on a transfer fee to secure the services of a player they'll pay upward of $150,000 per week, numbers that will make Defoe the highest-paid player in MLS history.

It's unclear whether the 31-year-old will join the Reds before next summer's World Cup, but TFC general manager Tim Bezbatchenko told the Sun last weekend he's working to have both DPs settled in Toronto before next season.

By the end of next week, expect TFC's roster to be -- on paper -- a lock to make the post-season, a prediction Leiweke made two months before the Reds embarked on what will eventually turn out to be the most transformational few weeks in club history.

Combine the additions of Jackson, Gilberto and Defoe with a number of likely veteran signings next week and we might be witnessing the start of an unprecedented turnaround by league standards.

"We promised our fans back in September that this club would make bold moves this off-season and that they should evaluate our progress in January," Bezbatchenko said today in downtown Toronto. "We will continue to work toward delivering on that promise over the next month."

After Defoe is introduced in January, the Reds will sport a championship-caliber striking trio in Gilberto and Bright Dike, who will go from being the club's first-choice No. 9 to a solid choice off the bench.

Keeping in mind Matias Laba has fully recovered from a toe injury, the addition of Jackson this past week will pay off in a midfield that already includes Alvaro Rey, who's expected to produce more in his second season with the club.

At the back, expect the Reds to add to a base that already includes the club's top player from a year ago, Steven Caldwell, another piece in the club's quest to check all of its boxes before next season.

"Hopefully, everything is teed up and ready to go so that when dates come along you can start checking the boxes," Bezbatchenko said of the club's swift off-season transformation. "The boxes are being checked."

With the addition of Gilberto and Defoe, the DP box is officially completely filled in.

CONVEY TRADED TO NEW YORK

Toronto FC announced Friday it has traded Bobby Convey and a 2014 second-round draft pick to the New York Red Bulls for a 2014 first-round pick and a 2016 third-round pick.

The move comes two weeks after the Reds declined the 30-year-old former U.S. international's option heading into 2014 before attempting to bring him back at a lower salary.

This after Convey said during TFC's end-of-year news conferences he expected to be back with the club in 2014.

"We'd like to thank Bobby for his contributions to Toronto FC and wish him all the best in New York," TFC GM Tim Bezbatchenko said in a statement.

In less than a full season with the club, Convey made 21 appearances for Toronto FC, registering one goal and four assists after being acquired in a trade with Sporting Kansas City on May 16, 2013.

In return for Convey, the Reds receive the No. 15 overall pick in the 2014 draft after originally trading their first-round pick to the Vancouver Whitecaps in exchange for Eric Hassli last year.

Along with the No. 15 pick, the Reds also hold the No. 46 and No. 60 picks in January's MLS SuperDraft in Philadelphia.

kurtis.larson@sunmedia.ca