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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the campaign—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was firmly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "If somebody informs me that we lose on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the manager anymore."

There exists a clear contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup tournaments compared to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut full season in charge. 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. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final tie ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

The Cost of Success and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the challenges of European football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with several fatigued squad members, many of whom have barely had a break all season.

The coach selected an completely changed lineup, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "no option" but to pick the bulk of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he stated.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The boss must balance his ambition to win a second major trophy with extreme pragmatism. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup match but was forced to introduce his "key players" following the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game unbeaten streak versus Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before suffering a serious knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since that injury. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We're accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the congested fixture list. "In my view this week was the sole complete week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is going to be like this. We have a beautiful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be ready."

Amid important players returning from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday schedule ramps up.