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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace could prioritize other competitions was swiftly rejected by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner after his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm not the manager anymore."

There is a marked difference in Glasner's approach to cup competitions compared to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner selected his strongest lineup for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Now, Glasner must figure out a strategy for payback versus the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Achievement and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the demands of continental football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on several weary players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The manager selected an entirely changed lineup, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "no option" but to choose the majority of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Considerations

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

Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup tie but was forced to introduce his "key players" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game winning run against Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since that injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the sole full week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid important players returning from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the holiday schedule ramps up.