'It’s outrageous': The Wolves academy winger who has left the UK behind for Romania and European football

Granted the former Wolves winger will have known little about the family uprooting from his birthplace in Taunton for Scotland when he was just 18 months old.

But heading to Wolves shortly after his 18th birthday was a sizable step both geographically and in his career trajectory, leaving home for the first time to pursue his dream of becoming a professional footballer.

And now, just a few months shy of a decade later, Armstrong is embarking on another new and exciting chapter, one which is taking him overseas, to Romania, and the task of playing a part in the revival of a team which was once one of the country’s superpowers.

It has been a troubling few years for Dinamo Bucharest, not just with their first ever relegation from Liga 1 in 2021/22 – from which they bounced back immediately – but also with several spells of financial challenges, including going into insolvency.

This is a club which has not only won 18 league titles but also became accustomed in the 1980s to going deep into European competitions, most prominently, in 1984, becoming the first Romanian team to reach the European Cup semi-finals, where they were edged out by eventual winners Liverpool.

Now under new ownership, the future is looking bright, and the club kicked off the 2025/26 season coming from behind to secure a 2-2 draw at Csikszereda on Monday night, complete with a new Scottish forward eager to make his mark.

“I became a free agent at the end of last season after four great years with Kilmarnock, and while it was a tough decision, I decided it was time to move on and try something new,” says Armstrong.

“There were a few bits and bobs of interest but going abroad was a route I was interested in, and when I heard about Dinamo Bucharest, it was definitely something I wanted to look into.

“I read up on the league and the fanbase and the history of the club, and it’s outrageous how supportive the fans are.

“They have been through a tough time recently but are now back on their feet with a project of trying to become the top team in Romania, and move towards being back to where they were all those years ago.

“That is the goal and I am excited to be a part of it, as well as experiencing a different culture, different style of play and different level of football.

“I am excited to play in front of this passionate fanbase as well as continuing to shape myself as a player and continue to grow.

“All being well, we can bring success back to Dinamo.”

Now 27, this next step follows pretty much a lifetime of Armstrong - like so many – making the necessary sacrifices to push for a career in football.

Growing up in Ayr, he was obsessed with the sport and, ‘always had a ball at my feet’.

Starting out at a local boys’ club run by his best mate’s Dad, he was scouted by Hamilton Academical, joining a youth set-up famed for producing the likes of James McCarthy and James McArthur for the Premier League.

Forever appreciative of the efforts of his parents in transporting him the hour’s distance from Ayr to Hamilton, and all over the country besides, there were also the usual sacrifices made by Armstrong, foregoing parties and time with friends to focus all his energies on his football.

As he approached his 18th birthday, various clubs were circling for his signature, with Wolves’ interest led by then Head of Football Development and Recruitment Kevin Thelwell, and Chief Scout Chris Badlan.

“A lot of offers came in, but Wolves were always keen, and I just felt like they were the main team who were interested and that made a big difference,” Armstrong recalls.

“It was so exciting to have a club like Wolves come in and offer me the chance to try and make a name for myself in England.

“I travelled down to meet everyone and got a feel for the place at the training ground and everything just felt proper - a proper club with good people.

“I felt like I could come down to Wolves and give it a right good shot, and it seemed to be the right club at the right time.

“I was going to be training in and around the first team from the start, as well as playing for the Under 23s, and was really looking forward to the move.

“Being away from home for the first time was exciting, as well as feeling nervous, but I think my Mum took it worse than me and couldn’t bear me being away!

“It was about going away to live on my own for the first time, and becoming an adult, and I settled really quickly and made lots of great friends.”

So much about football is about timing. Not just on the pitch, but how and when those opportunities might present themselves.

A young talent at Wolves following the double relegation will have had far more of a chance of a first team breakthrough in League One under Kenny Jackett than exactly the same player when Fosun’s investment prompted a hugely increased transfer budget and, ultimately, consistent place under Nuno Espirito Santo in the Premier League.

Armstrong effectively found himself caught between those two extremes, catching the tail end of the pre-Fosun era and then seeing the challenge dramatically increase in difficulty, albeit giving him the benefit of training with world-class team-mates.

And that included someone occupying a very similar forward position, Diogo Jota, so tragically lost in a car crash in Spain alongside his brother Andre a fortnight ago.

“Football changes pretty quickly, and from maybe thinking when I first went to Wolves, I would have a chance of breaking into the first team, when the takeover happened, what also changed was the calibre of player they were able to bring in,” says Armstrong.

“I remember Paul Lambert came in and was giving chances to young players like Morgan Gibbs-White and Connor Ronan, but I broke my foot and was out for four months when he arrived which wasn’t the best timing.

“It was actually Nuno who put me on the bench for the first time, in a League Cup game at Southampton, after I’d been doing well for the Under-23s.

“There was that opportunity to train with the first team as well, and these incredible players that were coming in, even some around the same age as me.

“I always remember Diogo arriving, only a year older, and wondering what he was going to be like.

“We could all tell straightaway that he was just unbelievable, able to use both feet, so strong and powerful, and able to score goals.

“It’s just awful what has happened and I am sure everyone will always remember his impact.”

For Armstrong, even though his Wolves stay of three years only included that one first team matchday association as an unused substitute at St Mary’s Stadium, there are definitely no regrets.

Friendships were forged among what was a lively and largely successful group of young players at the time, not only Gibbs-White and Ronan going on to build careers in different leagues and at different levels but also Anthony Breslin, Donovan Wilson, Will Randall, Aaron Hayden, Aaron Collins and others.

“The best laughs you will ever have in your life come from being in a dressing room like that,” says Armstrong, who has also stayed in touch with fellow Scot Barry Douglas, who came in and made an immediate impact in the team which won the Championship in 2017/18.

When the time came to leave, having already had a loan spell at Dunfermline, there was some sage motivational advice from then Academy Head Scott Sellars, who explained why Wolves had decided against taking up their year’s option.

“I still remember the conversation with Scott, who told me it was his decision not to give me the extra year,” Armstrong recalls.

“He said he firmly believed I could go and make a name for myself in a first team environment, and that I had the character and ability to play at a decent level.

“The boys who had their options taken up were being sent on loan to FC Jumilla in Spain, and Scott said that was too low a level for me at that time.

“I know I wasn’t ready to play for Wolves, but it was about going and finding somewhere else to play first team football, and I was very thankful to Scott for his advice.”

Unfortunately, however, progress didn’t run particularly smoothly for Armstrong following his release.

Some poor counsel from an agent saw him reject a move to Coventry, where Badlan was now Head of Recruitment, in the belief that other offers would come along.

When they didn’t, life became tough.  Eventually however, someone gave him a chance. That someone was John McGlynn, now managing Falkirk in the Scottish Premier League.  Then the boss at Raith Rovers, he handed Armstrong the chance at a fresh start, which he grabbed with both hands, scoring five goals in 11 games.

“I was out of the game for a long time and didn’t play football from May to December,” he recalls.

“I found I was constantly training with teams to try and get a deal, and I moved back to Scotland, but there wasn’t anyone willing to take the risk on a young player like me at that time.

“It was easy to say to myself, ‘keep going, don’t give up’, but there were a lot of times during that period when I was thinking that maybe football wasn’t for me.

“It was very difficult to keep getting knockbacks and keep getting rejected, but then there are two ways to respond – to either give up, or use it as added motivation.

“I think there is always a time in anyone’s career when you need someone to take a chance and show faith in you, and that is exactly what happened with me and John McGlynn.

“He took me to Raith Rovers, gave me an opportunity to play first team football, and I am so grateful to him and his coaching.

“He is a great man and unbelievable coach and someone I still talk to today – he got me back into football.”

From Raith, the journey took Armstrong to Ross County, where they won the Scottish Championship and Challenge Cup, and then back to Raith, winning League One and another Challenge Cup, before the switch to Kilmarnock.

Armstrong helped the team to promotion in his first year at Rugby Park, even when perhaps not playing as much as he would have liked, before three seasons in the Premier League, which included not only scoring at both Ibrox and Celtic Park, but being part of a European adventure including trips to FC Copenhagen and Tromso in the Conference League.

“I loved every minute of my time at Kilmarnock, as we went from the Championship to fourth place in the Premiership and Europe,” he confirms.

“Getting the chance to play for such brilliant fans at a high level in Scotland made it an incredible four years, and brought me so many memories I will never forget.”

Now though it is time for a next leg to the journey, and this exciting new challenge in Romania.

On the pitch, as Armstrong has mentioned, hopes are high.  And so too, his ambitions.

But what about off the pitch?   A decade on from first spreading his wings from Scotland to Wolverhampton, how has it been from Scotland to Bucharest?

Now settled in an apartment, his partner and their young daughter will be heading out to join him very soon.  

“Life over here is completely different as you might imagine,” Armstrong replies.

“People are already struggling to understand my Scottish accent and what I am saying!

“But there are a few of us at the club in the same boat and I’ve made some friends already which is good.

“My family are moving out to join me in a few weeks and it will be nice to raise our young daughter in a different country with a bit of sun!

“It’s going to be a great life experience, and the city here is unbelievable.  There is so much to do, it is safe and the people are so kind.

“We are really looking forward to what lies ahead, and it’s exciting not really knowing what’s in store, just getting my head down to work hard and see where it takes me.”

Seeing where it takes him.  The next part of the journey.  For Armstrong, one small step or one giant leap?  Either way, he is determined to make the most of it.