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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful few days with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace could prioritize other competitions was swiftly rejected by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the coach anymore."

There is a clear contrast in Glasner's philosophy to cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had already been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his best lineup for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight tie ended in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must devise a strategy for payback 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 European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the challenges of continental football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with some exhausted squad members, many of whom have barely had a break all season.

The manager fielded an entirely different side, including four teenagers, in their final Conference League match. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to choose the bulk of his preferred side, which looked decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The boss must balance his desire to win a second major trophy with extreme pragmatism. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered 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 tie but was forced to introduce his "key players" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match winning streak against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are used to it," commented Arteta on the busy schedule. "I think this week was the sole full week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is going to be similar. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive schedule intensifies.