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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the campaign—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace might prioritize other competitions was firmly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," declared Glasner after his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we lose on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There is a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his debut complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice lineup for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final match ended in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a strategy for revenge against the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

A Cost of Achievement and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the demands of continental football for the first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some fatigued squad members, many of whom have barely enjoyed a break all term.

The coach selected an completely different team, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "no option" but to pick the majority of his first-choice side, which looked extremely lethargic as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he stated.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The boss must balance his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to bring on his "key players" after 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 in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game unbeaten run against Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first time since then injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" 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 only complete week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is will be similar. We have a beautiful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be ready."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal present a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive period ramps up.