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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a restful few days with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was swiftly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," remarked Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 defeat to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the coach anymore."

There exists a stark contrast in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his best team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a slightly controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at the interval. Now, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a plan for payback against the present Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

The Price 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 has ushered in the challenges of continental football for the first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some weary squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The coach fielded an entirely different team, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. However, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the bulk of his first-choice team, which appeared extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he said.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The boss must balance his ambition to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced 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 potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning streak against Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and two in a later league win before sustaining a serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first time since then setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the congested fixture list. "I think this week was the only complete week we had to get ready. The period 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."

With key players returning from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the festive schedule intensifies.