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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet period with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace might focus on other competitions was firmly rejected by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm not the manager anymore."

There exists a stark difference in Glasner's approach to domestic cup tournaments relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had already been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice 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 loss at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at the interval. Now, Glasner must devise a strategy for payback 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 Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the rigors of European football for the first time. These demands are catching up with several fatigued squad members, many of whom have barely had a break all term.

The coach selected an entirely changed side, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, for the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to choose the bulk of his preferred side, which looked extremely jaded as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he affirmed.

The Gunners' Perspective and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that cup tie but was compelled to bring on his "key players" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match unbeaten streak versus Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since then injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're used to it," commented Arteta on the congested fixture list. "I think this week was the only full week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is going to be like this. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive period ramps up.