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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a quiet period with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other competitions was quickly rejected by their manager.

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

There exists a marked difference in Glasner's approach to domestic cup competitions versus his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner selected his first-choice team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a meeting with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final tie ended in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Now, Glasner must devise a strategy for revenge versus the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

The Price of Achievement and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a victim of his own success. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the challenges of continental football for the very first time. These demands are taking a toll on several exhausted players, many of whom have barely had a break all season.

The manager deployed an completely different side, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League match. However, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to choose the bulk of his first-choice team, which looked extremely jaded as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Team Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The manager must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback significantly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had made several changes for that cup tie but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match winning run versus Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before sustaining a serious knee injury, looks set to begin for the first time since that injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We're used to it," said 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 going to be similar. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive schedule ramps up.