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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful period with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the campaign—a League Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace might focus on other competitions was swiftly rejected by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we lose on purpose, the next day I'm not the manager anymore."

There is a marked difference in Glasner's strategy to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner must figure out a plan for revenge versus the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

A Cost of Success and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has ushered in the rigors of continental football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some fatigued players, many of whom have barely enjoyed a break all season.

The manager selected an completely changed lineup, featuring four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, for the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the majority of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he stated.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Team Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must juggle 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 comeback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made several changes for that League Cup tie but was compelled 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 possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match unbeaten run versus Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since then injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We're used to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the only full week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be similar. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a competition so we will be prepared."

With key players returning from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal pose a formidable challenge for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday schedule ramps up.