 Routledge has scored twice for Cardiff since joining on loan in November
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Aston Villa winger Wayne Routledge has rejected a permanent move to Cardiff City in order to move to another club.
The 23-year-old has impressed during his six week loan spell at the FA Cup finalists and has also attracted attention from Championship rivals QPR.
The FA Cup finalists bid an estimated £300,000 for Routledge and offered him a three-and-a-half year contract.
But Cardiff chief Peter Ridsdale said: "We have been informed that Villa have a agreed a deal with another club."
Cardiff were confident of signing the former England under-21 international as Bluebirds chairman Ridsdale said the club were "close" to agreeing a permanent deal for Routledge on New Year's Eve.
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But Routledge, whose loan spell at Ninian Park was due to expire on 17 January, has been recalled to Premier League giants Villa after agreeing a move to another club.
Ridsdale told BBC Sport: "We couldn't have done any more to keep him.
"We spoke to Villa and while we had not concluded a transfer fee we felt it was pretty close so that wasn't the issue.
"The issue was the lad himself wanted to go.
"We offered him a three-and-a-half-year contract on terms that were frankly very generous and all week he had been stalling on whether to except.
"That told me he was in two minds and I wasn't surprised when I got the phone call from Aston Villa on Friday morning."
Ridsdale added: "We are left to thank him for his six weeks at the club and to focus on the FA Cup match this weekend."
The former Tottenham Hotspur star joined Cardiff on a two-month loan deal in November as Dave Jones sought cover for injured midfielders Joe Ledley and Peter Whittingham.
Routledge, who has Ashley Young and James Milner ahead of him in the Villa pecking order, has made just two substitute appearances for Villa since joining from Tottenham for £1.25m in January 2008.
Routledge helped inspire the Bluebirds to fourth in the Championship and was part of their eight-match unbeaten run.
But Routledge rejecting Cardiff just days after striker Michael Chopra's successful loan spell was terminated by his parent club Sunderland is another blow to boss Dave Jones' Championship play-off push.
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