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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace might prioritize other competitions was quickly rejected by their boss.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one hammering to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm not the manager any more."

There exists a clear difference in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner must devise a strategy for revenge against the current Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week owing to European commitments.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the challenges of continental football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with some exhausted players, many of whom have barely had a break all term.

The coach deployed an completely changed team, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "no option" but to choose the majority of his first-choice side, which looked decidedly jaded as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he affirmed.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The manager must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable practicality. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had made several changes for that League Cup match but was compelled to introduce his "key players" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game winning run against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first time since that injury. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be prepared."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the festive schedule intensifies.