Huddersfield Town man's confident claim sums up mood as Terriers ready to return

Huddersfield Town defender Michal Helik believes he has “come back stronger” after having a spell on the sidelines through injury. The centre-back missed eight matches after suffering a hamstring setback in the 2-0 defeat to Blackpool in September.

The 29-year-old featured as a late substitute in the 2-2 draw at Crawley Town last Saturday, before starting the 4-1 victory over Manchester United under-21s in the EFL Trophy the following Tuesday, where he was brought off after 65 minutes.

The defender thanked the club’s medical staff for the part they played in getting him back fit, with the centre-back now feeling ready to continue contributing to Town’s campaign. “It’s been a tough time for me personally, I think it was around six or seven weeks, but I used it well,” Helik told HTTV.

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“I prepared my body well, I think I’ve come back stronger than I was. I did a great job with the physios and strength coaches and everyone at the training ground, so from here I can say thank you to them, because we did a good job, and I feel ready to go back again on the field.”

The Terriers went into the international break with a convincing victory against the Premier League academy, with Ben Wiles, Rhys Healey, David Kasumu and Tom Lees all on the scoresheet. However, it took Town a while to get going in the contest, with the sides heading in at the break at 1-1 following a half that left Michael Duff particularly frustrated.

“Before the game, in the meeting when you see the badge, Man United obviously are a big club, so the motivation was there, but I think we didn’t really show it in the first half,” Helik said.

“I’m glad that we reacted in the second half, and it was much better, because I’m not quite happy with the first-half performance of the whole team.

“He (Duff) wasn’t happy for sure. Obviously I think it should stay in our locker what is said in the dressing room between us, but I think we showed second half the reaction, and we need to work it out to do it from the first whistle, because I think it shouldn’t happen, the performance from the first half. Obviously it was 1-1, in the end it wasn’t the end of the world, but for us we should do better.”

With the victory, Town progressed through their group and into the final 32 of the EFL Trophy. The Terriers are four games away from a trip to Wembley, and Helik has his sights set on winning the competition.

“We are still in this cup, and hopefully we’ll go through to the next rounds and try to win it,” the centre-back said. “I’m really looking forward to playing in this cup. It’s my first time, but always if it’s something you can win, I think we should push for it, to win this and to have it in our locker and our CV that we win this cup.”

The Terriers are gearing up for a return to League One action this weekend, when they host Charlton Athletic at the John Smith’s Stadium on Saturday. For Helik, the gap in the fixture schedule didn’t come at an ideal time, with the centre-back eager to get back out on the pitch.

“To be fair, I just came back to playing football, so for me it’s unnecessary that break, but I think we still can use it properly,” the defender said. “We will probably have a few days off, and then we will be back working hard on the training ground to prepare ourselves for the Charlton game.”