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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a quiet period with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace could focus on other competitions was firmly rejected by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we are defeated deliberately, the following day I'm not the coach anymore."

There exists a stark difference in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup tournaments versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner picked his first-choice side for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie ended in a 3-2 loss 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 revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

A Price of Success and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the demands of continental football for the very first time. These demands are taking a toll on several fatigued players, many of whom have hardly had a rest all term.

The manager deployed an completely different side, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to choose the majority of his preferred side, which looked extremely lethargic as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," 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 considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup tie but was compelled to introduce his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive 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 are on an eight-game winning streak against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and two in a later league win before sustaining a long-term 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 busy schedule. "I think this week was the only full week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful opportunity 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 pose a formidable challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive period intensifies.