The former Leeds chairman, who signed the cheques which took the Whites to the brink of glory before their spectacular crash believes it might have turned out so different if he could have seen through a plan to bring in O'Neill nearly five years ago.
Ridsdale says that he had persuaded O'Neill to leave Celtic and struck a pre-contract deal back in January 2003 when Terry Venables was struggling after replacing David O'Leary.
He claims that he had repeatedly tried to lure O'Neill and finally succeeded as the Irishman entered the final six months of his Celtic contract which left him free to talk to other potential employers.
In further extracts in the tabloid today, Ridsdale writes: 'Martin had come down to discuss terms and reach an agreement in a deal approved by the board. At long last, I'd captured the signature I had been chasing for so long, the man I'd wanted before David O'Leary, the man I'd wanted since George Graham's reign.
'This was a coup I couldn't wait to announce. Excited and animated, he talked about the strengths and weaknesses of each Leeds player, which players he'd like to bring in. That day I'd agreed to pay him £2m a year to become the new Leeds manager.'
But events overtook his cunning plan as an improved run of form delayed Venables' sacking before the financial crisis that engulfed the club cost the chairman his job.