Warnock was omitted from the Blackburn Rovers squad to face Sunderland on Saturday as Villa's interest was made public and Martin O'Neill has now put in a second offer for Distin.
Rovers boss Sam Allardyce claims he must find a replacement for his left-back before he accepts any bid and Portsmouth gaffer Paul Hart is set to echo his sentiments.
But with both sides currently pointless after some disappointing defeats in the first few weeks of the season, the managers are unlikely to have much leverage when trying to keep their key men.
Hart has already been forced to sell star players Peter Crouch and Glen Johnson, whilst Allardyce had to sanction the transfer of Roque Santa Cruz to Man City.
Both Warnock and Distin are likely to want a move in order to play in Europe this season and hopefully compete at the top end of the Premier Division.
The English full-back could cost as much as £8m while Distin's fee is said to be in the region of £6m.
Of course both transfers rely on the bids being accepted, but with the transfer window set to close in a week's time, both Alladyce and Hart will be keen to ship out want-away players in favour of fresh faces.