In 1989, his father left Morocco to move to San Bonifacio, Italy, for work purposes, and the rest of the family, including Rachid, joined him later in 1995.
He was consequently noted by a number of professional clubs, and was acquired by Lega Pro Prima Divisione outfit SPAL during the 2008 summer transfer window.
With SPAL, he immediately managed to achieve some space under the guidance of head coach Aldo Dolcetti, and provided a 13-goal tally in his first professional season.
He then achieved national coverage after he managed to score two goals to Serie A side Palermo in the third round of the Coppa Italia 2009–10; the match ended with a 4–2 win for the Sicilians, but Arma was subsequently noted by Serie B giants Torino and was acquired by the granata in co-ownership deal only days after his impressive performance in the Coppa Italia, which also proved to be his final game with SPAL.
In July 2010, he was acquired by Serie B club Cittadella in a co-ownership bid, with Francesco Battaglia moved to opposite direction .