SAN JOSE — The Earthquakes have eliminated one of their finalists in the search for a new general manager, president Dave Kaval said Friday.

The executive said three finalists will be interviewed one more time Dec. 19 before the Major League Soccer team begins negotiations for the hire. Kaval added that Chris Leitch, a former Earthquakes player who has served as interim general manager since John Doyle’s firing in August, also remains a candidate.

Related Articles Earthquakes Q&A: Team paying top dollar for new GM Executives interviewed five finalists Wednesday and then decided against pursuing another U.S. candidate whom Kaval has declined to identify. That leaves Lee Congerton, a former Sunderland sporting director, and unidentified candidates from Mexico and South America.

“I’ve been impressed with the quality of candidates and their ideas and it could be very transformative in the way we run our soccer operations,” Kaval said. “Some are more analytically driven, some are more relationship driven.”

Kaval wants to take enough time to make the right hire because of how it could lay out the Earthquakes’ future.

“More than anything, this allows us to understand what we’re trying to get out of the sporting side of the business,” he said. “What are the goals, what do we want to accomplish. This is the first opportunity to have that more strategic conversation and it will lead to a better outcome.”