Ahli's Mohamed Abdul-Wahab collapsed on the pitch on Thursday after a heart failure while Ahmed Wahid of Tersana died in a car accident two days earlier.

"These deaths made me keen on returning back to Egypt to be near my family," Azmi told FilGoal.com in an exclusive interview.

Both players were Azmi's mates in youth ranks of the Egyptian national team, with Wahid playing with him in Zamalek.

"Death can come anytime and anywhere but seeing my friends passing away like that made me reconsider my European career," the 23-year-old added.

Azmi is set to fly to Greece on Wednesday to link up with his team who will play giants Olympiakos in the league on Sunday.

He started in Egypt's 4-1 victory over Burundi in the African Cup qualifiers earlier this week.

Azmi, who is still contracted to Paok for two more years, that he is ready to rejoin Zamalek should the current administration remained in office.

"If (Zamalek chairman Mamdouh) Abbas stayed in charge and Zamalek opened talks with Paok, I would like to play for the club again," he said.

Media reports suggested that Abbas is keen on bringing high-profile players in, including Azmi, during the winter transfer window after Zamalek's sluggish start in the league.

The former Egyptian champions lost two of their first four league games, one of the worst starts in the club history.

*The full interview will be posted later in the features section