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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th match of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace could prioritize other tournaments was quickly rejected by their boss.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one hammering to Leeds. "If somebody informs me that we lose on purpose, the following day I'm not the coach anymore."

There exists a marked difference in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup competitions relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner selected his first-choice team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight tie ended in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat 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 plan for revenge versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

A Cost of Success and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has brought the challenges of continental football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with several exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a rest all season.

The coach fielded an completely changed team, including four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "no option" but to pick the majority of his preferred team, which looked extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he stated.

The Gunners' Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his ambition to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had made several changes for that cup match but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning run against Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

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

Amid important players returning from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal present a formidable test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive schedule intensifies.