Lewandowski makes it Hel for Leeds
But scoring tips pay off for Town’s Michal
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BY ROSS HEPPENSTALL MICHAL HELIK stuck the knife into hated rivals Leeds – then thanked Poland teammate Robert Lewandowski for making him so prolific.
Highly-rated Helik replaced the injured Yuta Nakayama in the 26th minute and bundled home Huddersfield’s opener as half-time approached.
Remarkably, it was the centrehalf’s ninth of the season and fourth in his last seven games.
Terriers captain Jonathan Hogg was dismissed for a second yellow card moments later before Leeds levelled in the 67th minute when Patrick Bamford tapped home Connor Roberts’ low cross.
The result saw Daniel Farke’s men replaced in second spot by Ipswich as they failed to clinch a club-record 10th successive league victory.
Yet Helik said: “Leeds have got so much quality in their squad and I think they will go up directly.
“Maybe it will not be popular, but the quality they have in the squad is really good.
“If they perform until the end of the season as they have been doing then they should do it.
“There are a lot of good attacks in our league. Leeds have one of them.”
If Huddersfield go on to preserve their Championship status under new boss Andre Breitenreiter, Helik will have more than played his part.
The 28-year-old, who arrived from Barnsley in September 2022, revealed how time spent with Poland captain Lewandowski had made him a sharp shooter.
Huddersfield’s top scorer explained: “Every session with him and every other player in the national team is a great experience for me.
“Robert scores every type of goal and is different class, the best player in Polish football history without doubt.
“He’s a great striker, a great human being and I rate him really highly. The number of goals he has scored in the last 10 years is crazy!
“I’m also taking lessons from other strikers in the league because I know as a defender what I don’t like when they are against me, and I’m trying to do the same in the opposite way.
“There is always a moment as a defender when you switch off when the shot is coming, so I’m trying to be alive for the second balls especially.”
Huddersfield have taken four points from two games under Breitenreiter and showed impressive battling qualities in Saturday’s West Yorkshire derby.
Leeds will hope to be in the Premier League next season but Bamford was left frustrated by the Terriers’ timewasting tactics.
The striker said: “We don’t like it because of the position we’re in, but you can understand why they were doing it.
“It’s frustrating, but we’ll take a point.”