 Oko-Flex in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Armstrong Inya Echezolachuku Oko-Flex[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (2002-03-02)2 March 2002 (age 23) | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Position | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Botev Plovdiv | ||
| Number | 23 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2007–2009 | Tolka Rovers | ||
| 2009–2013 | St Kevin's Boys | ||
| 2013–2018 | Arsenal | ||
| 2018–2021 | Celtic | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021 | Celtic | 2 | (0) |
| 2021–2023 | West Ham United | 0 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | →Swansea City (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2023–2025 | FC Zürich | 29 | (2) |
| 2025– | Botev Plovdiv | 10 | (5) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Republic of Ireland U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2018 | England U16 | 5 | (1) |
| 2019 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 1 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 6 | (4) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:48, 20 November 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 01:20, 16 October 2024 (UTC) | |||
Armstrong Inya Echezolachuku Oko-Flex (born 2 March 2002) is an Irish professionalfootballer who plays as awinger forBulgarian First League clubBotev Plovdiv and theRepublic of Ireland under-21 national team.
Oko-Flex was born inDublin and started out playing with a local academy,Tolka Rovers, thenSt Kevin's Boys before being spotted byArsenal scoutLiam Brady, who had also come through the St Kevin's, with Oko-Flex then signing for theLondon club.[2] He joined Celtic on a three-year deal fromArsenal in September 2018.[3] He made his first team debut for the club as a substitute againstHibernian in January 2021.[4]
On 25 June 2021, Oko-Flex joinedWest Ham United on a two-year contract with an option for a third year.[5]
On 16 August 2021, Oko-Flex scored a hat-trick in hisPremier League 2 debut against his boyhood clubArsenal in a 6–1 home win.[6] On 15 December 2021, Oko-Flex was an unused substitute for West Ham'sPremier League fixture at theEmirates Stadium, a match won 2–0 by Arsenal.[7] This was the first time he had made a first-team squad for the club. Oko-Flex made his debut for West Ham United on 25 August 2022 coming on as an 82nd minute substitute forManuel Lanzini in a 3–0 away win againstViborg in the second leg of a play-off round game in the2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League.[8][9]He left the club at the end of the 2022-23 season. He made one first team appearance, in the UEFA Europa Conference League Play-Off round and featured on 35 occasions for the U21 side scoring 14 goals.[10]
On 30 August 2022, Oko-Flex joinedSwansea City on loan for the remainder of the 2022-23 season.[11] He was recalled from his loan in January 2023.[12]
On 14 August 2023, he signed a two-year contract withSwiss Super League clubFC Zürich.[13][14] On 17 September 2023, he scored on his debut for the club, in a 3–0 win away toFC Tuggen in theSwiss Cup.[15]
On 25 August 2025, Oko-Flex joined Bulgarian clubBotev Plovdiv.[16]
Oko-Flex was called up to theRepublic of Ireland U21 squad for the first time in November 2021, for their2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifiers againstItaly &Sweden.[17][18] Oko-Flex made hisRepublic of Ireland U21 debut on 16 June 2023, in a 2–2 draw withUkraine U21 in a friendly played inBad Blumau, Austria.[19] On 13 October 2023, he scored both of his sides goals in a 2–1 win away toLatvia U21.[20]
Oko-Flex is the son of the Nigerian-Irish community organiser Reginald Oko-Flex Inya.[21]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Celtic U21 | 2019–20 | — | — | — | 2[b] | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Celtic | 2020–21 | Scottish Premiership | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| West Ham United U21 | 2021–22 | — | — | — | 2[c] | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| West Ham United | 2022–23 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Swansea City (loan) | 2022–23 | Championship | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
| FC Zürich | 2023–24 | Swiss Super League | 17 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 20 | 3 | ||
| 2024–25 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| 2025–26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 36 | 3 | |||
| Botev Plovdiv | 2025–26 | Bulgarian First League | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 5 | ||
| Career total | 53 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 66 | 10 | ||