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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a quiet few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th match of the season—a Carabao Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace could focus on other tournaments was quickly dismissed by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "If anyone informs me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm not the coach anymore."

There is a marked contrast in Glasner's approach to domestic cup tournaments relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie ended in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a slightly controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a strategy for payback against the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Achievement and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the rigors of European football for the first time. These pressures are catching up with some exhausted players, many of whom have hardly had a rest all season.

The manager selected an completely different lineup, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to select the majority of his preferred side, which looked extremely jaded as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he stated.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "key players" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "furious" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning streak against Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since that setback. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is will be similar. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the festive period intensifies.