Villa chairman Doug Ellis tried to get Birch to Villa Park earlier this season after he left Chelsea.
When talks between the two broke down, Birch decided to join Leeds. Now though, according to Leeds sources, it appears that Birch is still the man wanted to fill the vacancy left at Villa Park when Mark Ansell departed last November.
Friends say the experienced insolvency expert has been shocked at the sheer scale of the club's debts and a few weeks ago had still not signed his contract.
Birch's departure would be another blow to Leeds' attempts to avoid going bust and the indication last night was that Villa may have to wait until the summer.