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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace might focus on other tournaments was swiftly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," remarked Glasner following his team's side's 4-1 defeat to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There exists a stark difference in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions versus his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had already been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his strongest lineup for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie ended in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback against the present Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has brought the demands of European football for the first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some exhausted players, many of whom have hardly had a rest all term.

The manager fielded an completely different team, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he stated.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Team Considerations

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

Arteta had made several changes for that cup tie but was compelled to introduce his "key players" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match unbeaten run versus Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and a brace in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first time since then injury. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're used to it," commented Arteta on the busy schedule. "I think this week was the sole full week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

With key players returning from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive period ramps up.