The Whites wanted to snap up the Huddersfield midfielder and made attempts to negotiate a deal with the Terriers for his signature.
No fewer than four offers were made by Leeds for O’Brien, the highest being £13m, but Hodgkinson, who would have had to replace the midfielder, was unhappy with the structure, which included add-ons.
The Huddersfield chairman came to the conclusion that Leeds only wanted to sign O’Brien to slot in as a squad player, otherwise they would have presented an acceptable proposal.
“So the reality was it wasn’t the amount, £13m was the fourth offer we rejected, it was the structure we rejected”, he told Yorkshire Live.
“It didn’t work for us as a football club, and my concern was the fact Leeds wouldn’t go up to a structure we wanted, which was a reasonable one. Even the player’s agent said so.
“That said to me he was going to Leeds as a squad player, because if you want someone and you want them to come and play in the Premier League [you meet the seller’s demands].
“We weren’t that far apart on the guaranteed amount and the structure of the add-ons, we weren’t that far apart, it was a million pounds in reality”, Hodgkinson added.
Huddersfield are now in talks with O’Brien and his agent about the midfielder signing a new contract at the club.
