West Brom 1 Burnley 2 - Report and pictures
A late rally after a flat first-half was not enough to save Albion from the ignominy of their ninth straight defeat in all competitions.
Ashley Barnes's acrobatic wonder-volley in the 22nd minute gave Burnley the lead before former Baggies striker Chris Wood doubled their advantage 17 minutes from time with a goal strewn with defensive errors.
Although Salomon Rondon pulled one back ten minutes later, Albion were unable to find the equaliser in the final moments of the game.
It means this crop, who are destined to drop into the Championship, fell to their ninth successive defeat in front of a depleted and frustrated Hawthorns crowd.
It's the first time the Baggies have lost nine in a row for more than 22 years, and the first time any Albion side has lost eight in a row in the Premier League.
And in truth, Burnley barely got out of second gear, not that they needed to.
The Baggies may have rallied in the second half but their first half performance was devoid of ideas and energy.
While Burnley's fans sang songs of European tours, Albion's directed four-letter tirades at head coach Alan Pardew and groans at their under-performing players.
With the Baggies all-but doomed, these remaining matches of the season are all about restoring pride.
But apart from a 20-minute burst at the start of the second half and a five-minute cameo at the end, this was a flat performance from a team simply going through the motions, a team counting down the days until the end of the season.
The official attendance was 23,455, but there was thousands of ticket-holders who had stayed away and the empty blue seats created an ghostly flat atmosphere at times.
Alan Pardew named an unchanged side from the team that lost to Bournemouth last weekend, keeping faith in the 3-5-2 formation used at the Vitality Stadium.
Former Baggies striker Chris Wood returned to the Burnley side, partnering Ashley Barnes up front.
And it was the visitors who shaded the opening exchanges, with Sean Dyche's team managing to control possession despite being one man down in midfield.
The lively Georges-Kevin Nkoudou flashed the first shot of the game over the bar as the Clarets probed carefully.
At the other end, Jay Rodriguez nodded Allan Nyom's cross on to Salomon Rondon, whose own header was saved by England hopeful Nick Pope.
But Burnley were enjoying the lion's share of possession and 17 minutes in, Ben Mee pounced on a Jonny Evans's miscontrol and fired a snap shot straight at Foster.
The atmosphere at The Hawthorns was flat, and the football on the pitch was matching it.
But then, in the 22nd minute, Barnes lit up the stadium with an acrobatic wonderstrike of supreme quality.
When the ball ricocheted off Kieran Gibbs and Chris Brunt on the left wing it fell into Aaron Lennon's path.
The winger stood up a cross to the back post that was behind Barnes, but he improvised expertly, kung-fu kicking the ball from above his head into the top corner.
Burnley tightened their grip after that, and six minutes later the first boos from the home fans were heard when Jonny Evans gave the ball straight to Nkoudou in a dangerous position.
Fortunately for the Baggies skipper, the winger's curled shot went wide, but the flat stadium started to bubble with anger.
Pardew's five-man defence suggested he had planned to keep it tight and nick the game 1-0, having seen his side struggle to score the second goal in countless previous games.
But once Burnley scored, that tactic became redundant, and it left the Baggies withough enough attacking prowess to threaten.
The midfield three should have been bossing the game, but Claudio Yacob and Chris Brunt were too static, forcing Jake Livermore to hare around the pitch.
Towards the end of the first half, the home fans started ironically cheering every successful Albion pass, but at one stage the move actually built into a promising attack that ended with Jay Rodriguez's shot being blocked.
That brief moment of encouragement was immediately lost seconds later when Wood was somehow left in acres of space at the back post by Evans and Hegazi.
Fortunately, he screwed his shot wide, but the groans were starting to grow louder.
Just before half-time, Rondon's glancing header from a Livermore cross drew Pope into a smart low save at the near post, before the whistle was greeted with boos.
Pardew brought Matt Phillips on at half-time for Kieran Gibbs, in order to match Burnley's 4-4-2 formation. Nyom moved over to left-back and Dawson shuffled to right-back.
After a limp first-half, the Baggies started the second period much brighter. There were controlling more of the ball and sending in foraging crosses from both sides.
Brunt's inswinger from the left nearly found Rodriguez at the far post before Phillips's cross from the right did, but his header was off target.
It took 20 minutes for Burnley to wake up, but Ashley Westwood snatched at his volley when the ball fell kindly to him.
Barnes blasted over soon after, but Dyche's men doubled their lead 17 minutes from time and wrapped the points up.
It was yet another calamitous goal to concede. After Yacob tackled Jeff Hendrick well, Nyom failed to react, allowing Wood to steal in and pounce on the ball.
He drove towards goal, and drifted pass Evans with ease thanks to the Albion captain's decision to dive in, before seeing his shot deflect up and hit Foster on the chest.
Fortunately for Wood, the ball looped up kindly to him and he was on hand to nod in his ninth league goal of the season.
The former Baggies was removed soon after, while Pardew sent Oliver Burke on for Rodriguez, who walked off to his name being sung by the Burnley fans.
Rondon pulled one back with seven minutes to go, controlling Evans's cross with his right foot before driving the ball into the back of the net with his left foot. There were so few fans left by then, it was barely celebrated.
The Baggies went searching for an equaliser after that, and came closest when Dawson's cross from the right almost found Phillips.
But that's been the story of Albion's season. Near misses. Almosts.
The losing streak is showing no signs of abating, because Burnley were there for the taking today.
This season is destined to limp unsatisfactorily to the bitter end, but by then, how many fans will be left?
Key moments
22 GOAL BURNLEY - Lennon stands a cross up to the back post, where Ashley Barnes kung-fu kicks it into the top corner.
73 GOAL BURNLEY - Chris Wood pounces on the ball and drifts past Jonny Evans with ease before nodding the ball in after his shot hits Foster's chest.
84 GOAL ALBION - Rondon controls Evans's cross with his right foot before driving the ball inside Nick Pope's post with his left.
Albion man of the match
Jake Livermore - One of the few who produced some energy in the first half, and kept going after the break.
Position in the table
20th, with 20 points from 32 games.
Teams
Albion (3-5-2): Foster; Dawson, Evans (c), Hegazi; Nyom, Brunt, Yacob, Livermore, Gibbs (Phillips 45); Rodriguez (Burke 76), Rondon. Unused subs: Myhill, McAuley, Gabr, Krychowiak, McClean.
Burnley (4-4-2): Pope; Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Ward; Lennon, Cork, Westwood, Nkoudou (Hendrick 69); Barnes, Wood (Vokes 79). Unused subs: Lindegaard, Taylor, Long, Marney, Bardsley.
Referee: Lee Probert
Attendance: 23,455 (2,705 away)
