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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace could focus on other competitions was swiftly dismissed by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," remarked Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we are defeated deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There is a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions compared to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's run 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 took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner selected his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie concluded in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must devise a plan for payback versus the current Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Success and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the demands of European football for the first time. These demands are catching up with some weary squad members, many of whom have barely had a break all term.

The manager fielded an entirely different side, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to pick the majority of his preferred side, which looked extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The boss must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

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

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

"We're accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the sole full week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period intensifies.