Mikey Johnston's 10-minute brace gave West Brom a 2-0 home win over Bristol City in Sunday's Sky Bet Championship clash at the Hawthorns.
The Baggies scored their first goal of the season on 34 minutes after a quiet opening to the game on the day of their arrival from Celtic.
The winger then followed up that effort with a classy finish on the stroke of half-time as West Brom wrapped up their final home game of 2024 with victory.
Bristol City, who have not won at this venue since 1993, enter the Christmas period having failed to win any of their previous four matches.
John Swift tried to catch Max O'Leary off guard when West Brom took a quick free-kick, but the Robins keeper did an unconventional job of pushing the rebound away from goal.
Centre-half Kyle Bartley headed over the bar moments later but the game, played in typical wintry conditions with howling wind and heavy rain, got off to a slow start – until the hosts' moment of magic.
Tom Fellows, behind only Middlesbrough's Finn Azaz on the Championship assist charts before this match, scored his eighth goal of the campaign when he crossed on the edge of the box. Despite his diminutive frame, Johnston scored with a header for his first goal of the season.
Things got even better for the Republic of Ireland a few minutes later when West Brom trio Swift, Josh Maja and Alex Mowatt combined in midfield to create another opening for Johnston, who picked up the ball on the left, cut inside and fired home a rasping shot behind O'Leary.
The visitors almost responded before half-time when Anis Mehmeti's cross at the back post found Luke McNally, but Albion keeper Alex Palmer equalized his low effort and tipped the ball over the bar.
However, Fally Mayulu gave Palmer something to think about after the break when he directed a firm drive towards a target that demanded a tackle.
If City had hoped to gain momentum to get back into the game, the momentum they were looking for did not arrive.
It really looked like West Brom were going to add to their numbers, first through Maja and then Fellows. And reserve player Uroš Račić stabbed O'Leary in the palms from the edge of the penalty area.
In the closing stages, Devante Cole – West Brom's summer signing, who made just his seventh substitution in this match – fed Grady Diangan but could only poke the ball wide of the far post at full effort.
Fortunately for him and West Brom, the job was done.
Managers
West Brom's Carlos Corberan:
“Bristol City and us will be the teams that suffer in this period.
“Teams like Derby will play four games in a row, we will play five. They have a week to play on Thursday, while we only played on Sunday.
“It's a physical deficiency. It's crazy. Playing against a team at this time of the season that has had two more days of recovery is not fair.
“We can't say that we don't go for results, that's my responsibility, but that's too much.
“Five games in a row. We shouldn't have played today, knowing we have games coming up. We were supposed to play on Saturday, like the other teams in the Championship.
“We've only got three days in between and it's going to be tough from a physical perspective. It is what it is.”
Bristol City's Liam Manning:
“The better team definitely won, they were better than us. We were a bit passive at times, caught between pressing and blocking.
“It's a problem when you switch off. The space came from the counter-attack. When they turned it over, they were very quick from their box into our box. We have to be better and I'm looking at myself first and foremost.
“They are so well organized defensively, that it is difficult to come. We didn't get into good enough areas. We ended up getting kicked out.
“We have to respond on Boxing Day now. We have to win more games, it's as simple as that. After all, we are in the results business.
“We have to start winning games, you don't want to drift and go too far without them. If you want to keep going, you have to get back-to-back results and we haven't done that enough.”