West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Hull City

Saido Berahino has scored nine Premier League goals this season for West Brom

• Berahino's ninth Premier League goal of the season

• Hull lose strikers Jelavic and Hernandez to injury

• Tigers drop to 18th in the Premier League

• Baggies win in Pulis's first league match in charge

Tony Pulis won his first Premier League match as West Brom manager as Saido Berahino's goal saw off Hull City.

Berahino netted with a low strike from 12 yards from an indirect free-kick after Hull goalkeeper Allan McGregor picked up Ahmed Elmohamady's back-pass.

West Brom's Brown Ideye should have scored earlier on but dragged his shot wide with only McGregor to beat.

Hull created few chances after strikers Nikica Jelavic and Abel Hernandez both suffered first-half injuries.

However, the defeat was harsh on Hull and manager Steve Bruce will be furious with the goal they conceded as Elmohamady needlessly touched the ball back to McGregor just before the keeper could pick it up.

But the Baggies took full advantage as substitute Victor Anichebe nudged a pass to Berahino to blast the ball past a number of away defenders on the goalline.

The result sees Hull drop to 18th in the Premier League, only two points above bottom side Leicester City.

Bruce could also be forced to strengthen his attacking options after Robbie Brady and Tom Ince played as emergency strikers after both Jelavic and Hernandez went off in the first half.

Apart from a Brady effort that was pushed over the crossbar by Ben Foster, Hull were restricted to speculative attempts from outside the penalty area that went well off target.

Meanwhile for Pulis, who took charge at the Hawthorns earlier this month to replace the sacked Alan Irvine, he will be desperate to keep hold of England Under-21 striker Berahino.

The 21-year-old has been linked with a January move to either Tottenham or Liverpool and was instrumental in his side's best moves.

He should have done better than shoot wide from 10 yards out after a one-two with Stephane Sessegnon and then twice had efforts comfortably saved by McGregor.

But the Hull keeper should have been picking the ball out of the net in the 41st minute.

Ideye chased on to Berahino's through ball, but with only the Scot to beat, the Nigerian forward, who has only scored once in 11 Premier League games since a £10m move to the Baggies, dragged a horrible shot well wide.

Luckily for Ideye, that miss did not prove costly as Berahino's 78th-minute winner took West Brom up to 14th.

Pulis has never been relegated in his managerial career and this was the perfect start as he tries to keep that record intact.

West Brom's Saido Berahino scored four times in his previous game, a 7-0 FA Cup win against Gateshead

West Brom boss Tony Pulis guided Crystal Palace to a final position of 11th in 2013-14

Hull's Nikica Jelavic, who has scored six Premier League goals this season, went off injured after 33 minutes

Brown Ideye joined West Brom for £10m in the summer from Dynamo Kiev