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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a restful few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the season—a Carabao Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might focus on other tournaments was firmly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we are defeated deliberately, the next day I'm no longer the manager any more."

There exists a marked difference in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup tournaments compared to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner picked his strongest lineup for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must figure out a plan for revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

A Price of Success and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, 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 European football for the very first time. These pressures are catching up with several exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a rest all term.

The coach fielded an entirely different lineup, featuring four teenagers, in their final Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to choose the majority of his first-choice side, which appeared decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he stated.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup match but was forced to bring on his "key players" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match unbeaten streak versus Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and a brace in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, is expected to start for the first time since that setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only full week we had to get ready. 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 important players returning from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period intensifies.