West Bromwich Albion suffered their first defeat under interim boss Richard Beale as Bristol City beat them at The Hawthorns on Tuesday night.

The Baggies again went behind in the first half as Joe Williams opened his City scoring account with a low, flicked finish.

Nahki Wells bagged their second on the stroke of half time, he met Antoine Semenyo's cross to glance past goalkeeper Alex Palmer.

Albion hit the woodwork twice during the second half with ambitious efforts from Brandon Thomas-Asante and John Swift but ultimately fell short of the required standard.

Here are four things we learnt from the game.

  • False dawn for Beale

Saturday's victory over Reading provided plenty of optimism for Albion fans.

Their much-improved performance had the result to match and interim manager Beale earnt plaudits for the well-organised nature of his side.

A 3-4-3 formation was selected against the Royals and again on Tuesday, but to varying results.

The early shut-out on Saturday was a welcome blessing for the Baggies, as they prevented the opposition from scoring first for just the fifth time this season.

A well-organised defensive structure saw them to that particular defeat but crumbled during two crucial moments against the Robins.

The defence failed to clear their lines for the first and failed to track the run of Wells for the second.

Attacking-wise, Albion looked lost when they forrayed forwards.

The constant balls into the box caused little problems for Bristol City’s back three and their set pieces were completely ineffective.

It's clear to see that despite the much-improved performance against Reading, Albion are in need of direction to prevent their current spiral.

Embed from Getty Images

  • City show set-piece solidity

Bristol City’s poor record of defending set-pieces certainly didn't show in this one.

Their mix of zonal and man-marking meant they dealt with Albion's threat from corners and free-kicks well.

Despite a mighty 13 corners for the home side, City looked at home when dealing with a range of delivery types from the likes of Matt Phillips, Jed Wallace and Taylor Gardner-Hickman.

Speaking to Bristol's club media, boss Nigel Pearson was delighted with the way they defended from these situations:

"The win is a reward for a very professional performance," said Pearson.

"One of the pleasing things was how we collectively defended our box, be that from a set-piece or open play.

"To a man we were very visible and defended with a real commitment and enthusiasm, and with a lot of bravery and skill too."

Embed from Getty Images

  • Albion's manager hunt must pick up speed

Steve Bruce's sacking came with an heir of inevitability about it.

The 61-year-old had lost support from the stands and inside the dressing room leading to his departure.

With his exit coming too late as some would argue, there should have been plenty of time to arrange a successor.

Carlos Corberan, Steven Schumacher and Sean Dyche are the names that have been strongly linked so far.

But with the Baggies in limbo, their search for a new manager seems no closer to reaching its outcome.

Embed from Getty Images

  • Bristol City must strike consistency

After climbing into the top half of the division, to be able to progress, Bristol City must aim to hit a good run of form.

With fellow form fluctuators Reading up next it will be interesting to see if Pearson's men can continue to bury their defensive woes and move up the division.