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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the season—a Carabao Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace could prioritize other competitions was firmly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," remarked Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm not the coach any more."

There exists a marked contrast in Glasner's approach to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his best team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight tie ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a rather controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a plan for payback versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

The Price of Achievement and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the rigors of European football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with several fatigued players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The coach deployed an entirely different side, including four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to pick the bulk of his preferred team, which looked extremely jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he said.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to bring on his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "furious" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match unbeaten run against Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, looks set to start for the first time since then injury. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is going to be similar. We have a beautiful chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a formidable test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive period intensifies.