Holland coach Bert van Marwijk refused to criticise Robin van Persie after the Arsenal captain missed a hatful of chances in the Oranje's shock 1-0 defeat against Denmark in their Euro 2012 opener in Kharkiv.

Van Marwijk's highly-fancied side created 28 opportunities, hitting the post through Arjen Robben and having two penalty appeals turned down, but Michael Krohn-Dehli scored the only goal of the game at Metalist Stadium.

Humbled: Van Marwijk (left) and Van Persie (right) reflect on Holland's defeat

Van Persie was preferred to Klaas Jan Huntelaar in the starting line-up and, despite his failure to make the most of the numerous chances that came his way, Van Marwijk insisted the blame for Holland's lack of goals should be shared around.

Speaking at his post-match press conference, the Oranje coach said: 'It was not only Robin van Persie. There were maybe four, five, six players who had a lot of chances. And the referee had also a chance to give us a penalty.

'I'm not looking for excuses. I'm just trying to give answers to the questions.'

The result threw Group B - dubbed the "Group of Death" - wide open, with Germany and Portugal both also vying to advance to the quarter-finals.

The Dutch next face Joachim Low's Germany on Wednesday, and Van Marwijk recognised the added importance of that game given the result.

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