SAN JOSE — The Earthquakes are diving into the offseason with gusto, scouring Europe and South America in the coming weeks to potentially sign three new attacking players.

San Jose officials announced Friday they have embarked on a new direction just days after failing to advance to the Major League Soccer playoffs for the third consecutive year.

“The area that we need to invest in is we need more goal scorers,” president Dave Kaval said. “We have a plan we’ve been hatching to get out there and do that.”

Kaval said San Jose has the money and commitment to add two to three forwards to complement the successful pairing of Chris Wondolowski and Quincy Amarikwa.

Technical director Chris Leach is headed to Europe whereas general manager John Doyle and coach Dominic Kinnear are scheduled to fly to Argentina next week.

They also are preparing for three Major league Soccer drafts, starting Dec. 9 with the waiver draft. The re-entry drafts are scheduled for Dec. 11 and Dec. 17. San Jose also has three picks in the college draft is mid January, including No. 8 overall.

The Quakes (13-13-8, 47 points) more than doubled their total victories of 2014 this year.

In MLS’ milestone 20th season, the team rebounded from a dreadful 2014 season behind new $100 million Avaya Stadium and Kinnear as the coach. The Quakes sold out all of their MLS games at the 18,000-seat stadium, where they went 7-3-5 in their inaugural year.

But they tied Portland for seventh in the Western Conference with 41 goals in 34 games, underscoring the need for more offense.

“You almost can’t have enough good striking players,” Kaval said.

The Quakes president said losing Wondolowski to the U.S. national team for all of July was a major factor in the Quakes’ failure to advance to the MLS Cup playoffs.

“You have to be deeper to deal with those types of call ups,” he said.

Wondolowski worked well with Amarikwa, who had six goals and four assists after arriving in June in a trade with the Chicago Fire.

But the Earthquakes don’t really know whether they already have a third quality forward in African-born Innocent, the designated player they acquired in the offseason.

The Swiss striker missed most of the year after suffering an ACL tear just as he seemed to get integrated into the team.

“With Innocent, it still is a bit of a wildcard,” Wondolowski said Friday. “We don’t know what we will get out of him. We do have three good strikers right now.”

But the team’s leading scorer with 16 goals doesn’t see the need for wholesale changes like after 2o14.

The team’s star also has someone in mind to join the forwards: Sebastian Giovinco, the Italian sensation for Toronto FC.

“That’s the name and kind of position I’d like,” he said when asked who he would try to sign.

San Jose already has the maximum three designated players so getting an international star is doubtful.

But one can dream.

The likely trend is for the team to make smart deals as they did over the summer in signing Anibal Godoy, Marc Pelosi and Amarikwa.

Midfielder Shea Salinas would welcome strong additions, but tempered expectations when saying every team goes into the offseason searching for quality forwards.

“More times than not end they end up disappointed,” he said.

Despite missing the playoffs on the final day of the regular season, players head into the offseason with a sense of optimism because of the foundation built over the past year.

Veteran center back Clarence Goodson credited Kinnear with the mindset. The coach who grew up in Fremont took over the Quakes this season after nine years with the Houston Dynamo.

“They brought a new vitality to this team,” Goodson said of Kinnear and his staff. “The guys giving absolutely everything they have.”

Goodson, coming off one of his best seasons in years, praised the training routine that kept “everyone at an extremely high level. There is an accountability. More of a cutthroat mentality.”

Goodson continued: “That part of it has been so refreshing. We come in every day and know it’s going to be sharp, it’s going to be organized. We were always well prepared.”

Salinas had the same reaction to his new coach. The Texan knew Kinnear’s reputation for getting teams to peak at the end of the season, but “playing for Dom exceeded my expectations,” Salinas said. “The training sessions were short and sharp. There never a lot of standing around. They all had a purpose.”

Here’s a breakdown of the Earthquakes by position as they look toward 2016:

Forwards

Outside of the magical season of 2012, San Jose has not seen a better striker combination than Wondolowski and Amarikwa since re-entering the league eight years ago.

It’s safe to say the Supporters’ Shield year of ’12 was an outlier for a franchise struggling to become one of the league’s elite clubs.

Wondolowski scored double-figure goals for a league-record sixth consecutive season. At 32, his overall play is as good as ever after seasoning under Jurgen Klinsmann with the U.S. national team.

Amarikwa, 28, proved to be the physical, hold-up forward the team had been lacking the past two seasons.

But successful teams have more than two quality forwards. Their plans to upgrade could spell the end for backup target forwards Adam Jahn and Mark Sherrod, who had one goal between them.

San Jose also might have more wiggle room without the salary of Steven Lenhart, who missed the entire 2015 season because he couldn’t recover from knee surgery. Kaval declined to discuss Lenhart’s status.

Midfield

Matias Perez Garcia, who turned 31 this month, should return for the final season of his 2﻿1/2-year contract. The Argentine playmaker is the centerpiece of a strong central midfield that includes Fatai Alashe, Godoy and Pelosi. The Quakes have Stanford alum JJ Koval as a solid backup. The question is whether they keep Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi, who had only three appearances this year because of injuries.

One concern: Alashe and Pelosi could miss considerable time with the U.S. under-23 team that will try to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in March against Colombia.

San Jose looks strong on the wings with Shea Salinas, Cordello Cato and Sanna Nyassi all capable of starting. The team also has Tommy Thompson, 20, who will be in his third year as a pro next season.

Defense

San Jose has one of the league’s most experienced backlines.

When healthy, Victor Bernardez and Goodson, both 33, are a formidable pairing in the central defense.

Fullback Jordan Stewart, also 33, has proven valuable with his versatility. And when Stewart was lost for the season because of a torn Achilles tendon, Shaun Francis, 29, finished the year brilliantly.

Marvell Wynne, 29, was suburb at right back, and might have been the best offseason addition.

But there’s danger here in satisfaction. As well as they performed in 2015, the defenders are reaching the point where age becomes a factor.

The Quakes must find younger central defenders, such as former Cal stars Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United) and Christian Dean (Vancouver Whitecaps).

We’re not saying it’s time to shove the veterans to the side. They have earned their assignments. But San Jose could be caught in a desperate situation if it doesn’t address the need sooner than later.

Goalkeepers

The East Bay’s David Bingham tied the club record for shutouts, with 12. He also had 105 saves, fourth-best in the league.

Bingham, 26, took advantage of his opportunity to establish himself as San Jose’s keeper of the present and future when given the job this year.

That said, the team might need more depth. It was difficult to know whether backup Bryan Meredith, 26, was ready because he didn’t get to play enough.

Contact Elliott Almond at 408-920-5865. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/elliottalmond.