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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th match of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was swiftly dismissed by their head coach.

"No, I don't think so," remarked Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm not the coach any more."

There exists a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup competitions compared to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first full season in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice side for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight match concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

The Price of Success and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the rigors of European football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some fatigued players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a rest all season.

The manager selected an completely different side, including four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to choose the bulk of his first-choice side, which looked extremely jaded as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Team Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The manager 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 just days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that cup tie but was forced to bring on his "key players" after the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match unbeaten run against Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before sustaining a serious knee injury, is expected to start for the first since then setback. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the only full week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is will be like this. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid key players coming back from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday period ramps up.