CHRIS ARMSTRONG doesn’t do many football interviews these days but who wouldn’t want to talk about the Champions League final between Tottenham and Liverpool.

Armstrong went from playing in goal for Llay Colts in the Wrexham Youth League as a teenager to becoming Spurs record signing when he moved across London from Crystal Palace for £4.5m in 1995.

“It’s been one helluva journey,” said Armstrong, who went from packing burgers in a Wrexham factory to beef up the Reds strikeforce when ex-Racecourse boss Dixie McNeil handed him a professional contract 30 years ago.

Now 48 and still living in London, Armstrong - despite openly admitting to being an Arsenal fan - has terrific memories of his time at Tottenham where he scored 48 goals in 141 appearances from the Premier League giants.

“I had a slow start, they’d lost a few players including Jurgen Klinsmann,” said Armstrong, who soon struck up a decent partnership with Teddy Sheringham in the Spurs attack.

Armstrong had arrived from a Palace side that had just been relegated but his goals per game ratio at Selhurst Park - 45 in 118 games - was always going to attract attention.

His strike partner at Palace was another former Wrexham striker, Andy Preece, who had made a name for himself playing at Stockport County alongside Kevin Francis.

But with his electrifying pace, aerial ability and the fact that he knew where the net was, Armstrong was in high demand.

“Everton and Aston Villa were in for me and it was a difficult choice,” said Armstrong. “Everton would have meant moving back closer to home but after a few years in London, I was enjoying life down there.

“But it was purely a decision based on football and after speaking to manager Gerry Francis, I was impressed.”

In an interview with The Independent during his time at White Hart Lane, Armstrong said: “Talking to Gerry Francis made my mind up, he had studied my game a lot - he knew more about me than myself. He said I reminded him of Les Ferdinand and look what he has done for Les. He was in the reserves when Gerry arrived at Queen’s Park Rangers, now he is one of the top players in the country

“People try and put pressure on you but that is just the way it is when you have a big price tag on your head and I am not looking to replace Klinsmann, I am just looking to be myself,

“He was 30, had played in World Cups and in Italy, I am at the other end of my career. It was the same when I went to Palace. People asked how I felt about replacing Ian Wright but I never really thought about it. I just did my own thing.”

Armstrong, who was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and lived in London as a toddler before moving up to Wrexham to live with foster parents, Pam and Roy Ashfield when he was eight, certainly did do his own thing, scoring against Coventry before bagging a double against Chester City in the League Cup.

“I never forgot my roots and I know scoring two against Chester would have made a lot of Wrexham fans happy,” recalled Armstrong, who will always remember the part Wrexham played in his footballing career.

And there was no hesitation when asked what his best memory was during his two year stint at The Racecourse from 1989-1991.

“It has to be scoring the winner in the Cup Winners Cup tie in Lyngby in Denmark,” said Armstrong. “We went on to play Manchester United in the next round and to run out at Old Trafford was a great experience for what was a young group of lads.”

Armstrong would soon be gracing the Old Trafford turf and the other top stadiums in the country as he hit the big time including two goals in a 4-1 thrashing of United on New Year’s Day in 1996.

“I think that took mine and Teddy’s combined goals total to 23,” added Armstrong, who bagged another brace against the Red Devils as Spurs won the League Cup Final in 1999.

“I picked up a ligament injury, had an operation but my career was really all stop start after that,” said Armstrong, who ended his playing days back where it all started at Wrexham in 2003 before eventually hanging up his boots two years later.

“I look back at all my career with good memories. I’ve enjoyed my time at all the clubs I’ve played for.”

Tottenham was the the pinnacle of his career but are the current crop good enough to beat favourites Liverpool tomorrow night?

“Liverpool are the team in form but Kane’s back for Tottenham,” he added. “I just hope it’s a great game although I know that if Liverpool win I’ll have some stick when I go back home to Wrexham.

“They were all Liverpool fans in that house!”