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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the campaign—a League Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace could prioritize other competitions was firmly dismissed by their boss.

"No, I do not believe that," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one hammering to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm no longer the manager any more."

There is a stark difference in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions versus his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest side for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final match concluded in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European obligations.

The Cost of Achievement and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has ushered in the challenges of European football for the first time. These demands are taking a toll on some fatigued squad members, many of whom have barely had a rest all season.

The coach fielded an completely different side, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the majority of his first-choice team, which looked extremely lethargic as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he affirmed.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a second major trophy with considerable pragmatism. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that cup tie but was forced to bring on his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning run versus Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since that injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the sole full week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful chance to go into the semi-final of a competition so we will be ready."

With important players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday period ramps up.