José Mourinho has described his criticism that West Ham played “19th-century football” at Stamford Bridge last season as “stupid, silly words” and lavished praise on the impact made by his opposite number, Sam Allardyce, as the teams prepare to meet again on Boxing Day.

The visitors arrive in west London in the top four at Christmas for the first time in almost 30 years, their tally of 31 points an improvement of 17 on this time last year when West Ham had languished fourth from bottom. The unlikely goalless draw secured at Chelsea at the end of January had been chiselled out after one win in 10 league games and a humiliation in the Capital One Cup semi-final against Manchester City.

But, while it provoked that infamous criticism from Mourinho, it inspired a four-game winning streak which effectively sent West Ham towards safety. “Last season they were in big trouble and, when you are fighting for relegation every point is a point, you have to do everything to get points,” said the Portuguese. “So yes, it was a turning point for them. It gave them the confidence that they needed and after that they kept in the division.

“Last season I had a couple of words about the … not about the way they played but about the way they started wasting time after two minutes of the game, which I don’t like. But I respect Sam Allardyce as a coach, and as a person he is a very good guy. As a coach he has a beautiful career and I’m happy that he’s doing well with West Ham.” Asked specifically about the “19th-century football” line, Mourinho added: “Yeah, stupid, silly words.”

The Chelsea manager, who has never lost a game over the festive season while managing in England, spent time with Allardyce over the summer while the pair coached their respective Rest of the World and England squads in a Soccer Aid charity match at Old Trafford, with that involvement having helped repair their relationship from that occasion back in January.

“If they finish top four, then manager of the season is Big Sam, the team of the season West Ham, because it would be an amazing achievement comparing West Ham with the investment that other teams did to finish in the top four,” added Mourinho.

“But why not? Sam deserves respect. He has my respect. Both teams are different from last season. We are a better team, we have more creativity, we have more goals, we have more attacking dynamism. And West Ham is also a better team. They are not a team in this moment to just try not to concede. They also try to score goals, so the game will be very difficult.

“You see the way they play every game: they are a better team, they have better players and, also, Big Sam is showing now he is not what people sometimes say: a defensive coach who only knows how to play defensively, direct and long balls. He’s giving a completely different image about himself, which can make the game more difficult for us obviously but, at the same time, more attractive for everyone.”