Everton 0-1 West Bromwich Albion

Salomon Rondon scored his fifth league goal of the season for West Brom

Salomon Rondon scored the only goal as West Brom earned their first league win in six against a luckless Everton.

The visitors netted against the run of play as Rondon chested in from close range after Jonas Olsson's flick on.

The home side looked to get back into the match and hit the post twice in the first half through Ross Barkley's curled shot and Tom Cleverley's cross.

Gareth Barry twice came close for Everton in the second half, as West Brom's Chris Brunt shot narrowly wide.

Relive Everton's loss at home to West Brom

All the reaction to Saturday's games

Inconsistent Everton feel the Blues at home

Having won their past two in the Premier League before this game, there was optimism around Goodison Park that Everton may be in with a shout for a Europa League spot, especially after seeing fifth-placed Manchester United lose.

But the Toffees were wasteful against West Brom, chalking up 34 shots in the match without managing to find the net. Only six of those were on target and they have now lost six games at home in the league.

Everton had 34 shots against West Brom without scoring. Six were on target (left), 13 were off target (middle) and 15 were blocked

Having had 76% possession, they could count themselves unlucky when striking the woodwork twice, but top scorer Romelu Lukaku failed to add to his 16 goals in the top flight, being well shackled by the visitor's defence.

Barkley tried to exert his influence but with the opposition back line sitting deep, the England international was made to shoot from long range.

There were a smattering of boos from the home supporters at the final whistle, frustrated that their side failed to build on their recent good form and dropping to 10th in the table.

Baggies bounce back with much-needed win

West Brom were camped deep in their half throughout the match, with Jonas Olsson (3) almost at the edge of his own area. Playing on the break, only striker Salomon Rondon (33) was left in the Everton half

Tony Pulis's side went into the game on the back of a poor run which had seen them looking over their shoulder at the relegation zone, but they did manage to scrape past Peterborough on penalties in the fourth round of the FA Cup in their last game.

A disciplined display against wave after wave of Everton attacks saw them pick up three points and climb up to 13th in the league, eight points above the drop zone.

Centre-back Jonas Olsson was the bedrock on which their clean sheet was based, thwarting the Merseysiders throughout the game. The Swede made a match-high 17 clearances and six blocks.

Having gone three of their past four games without a shot on target, they needed just one in this match, as Rondon's opportunistic effort from the goalline in the 14th minute gave them victory.

Man of the match - Jonas Olsson

A solid performance from the Swedish centre-back to preserve a clean sheet for West Brom

What they said:

Everton boss Roberto Martinez: "We didn't do anything wrong. Their one shot on target ends up in the back of the net.

"The effort and the way that we play the game I couldn't fault. It is one of those moments in football sometimes that are difficult to explain."

"We have been very strong away from home and the points we have achieved is outstanding but we should base our success on making Goodison Park a fortress."

West Brom boss Tony Pulis: "Everton are a top four or five team. The depth of quality within the club is fantastic, they had a great performance to beat Stoke last week and to come here and put in that performance is fantastic.

"We played Everton at the beginning of the season and we were 2-0 up and they scored three late goals. We were distraught, so it is nice to come here and get one back on them."

What next?

Both sides are in FA Cup fifth-round action next Saturday. Everton travel to face Bournemouth (kick-off 17:15 GMT), while West Brom are at Championship side Reading (15:00).

The stats you need to know:

• Everton had 34 shots against West Brom; the most by any team in a single Premier League game this season

• The Toffees have conceded more goals at home than any other team in the league this season (23)

• The Baggies have had fewer shots on target than any other team in the top flight (77)

• Gareth Barry earned his 108th yellow card, extending his Premier League record