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You could excuse 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 season—a League Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace might prioritize other competitions was firmly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," remarked Glasner after his team's side's four-one hammering to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There exists a clear contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup tournaments relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut complete campaign 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 selected his strongest side for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final match ended in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner must devise a plan for revenge versus the current Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

A Cost of Success and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a victim of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the rigors of continental football for the first time. These pressures are taking a toll on several exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly had a rest all season.

The manager fielded an entirely different lineup, including four teenagers, in their final Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to choose the majority of his first-choice side, which appeared extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he stated.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning run against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and two in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since that setback. Arteta disclosed 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 full week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful chance to go into the semi-final of a competition so we will be ready."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal present a formidable test for a Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the holiday schedule ramps up.