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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the season—a League Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace could focus on other competitions was swiftly dismissed by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm not the coach anymore."

There is a stark difference in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup competitions compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had already been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner picked his best team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final match ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

A Cost of Achievement and European Exhaustion

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 very first time. These demands are taking a toll on some fatigued players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all season.

The manager fielded an entirely different lineup, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to choose the majority of his first-choice team, which appeared decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he affirmed.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed 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 set up 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-game winning streak against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and two in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, is expected to start for the first since that injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used 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 chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday schedule intensifies.