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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a quiet period with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the season—a Carabao Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace could focus on other tournaments was swiftly dismissed by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm not the coach any more."

There exists a clear contrast in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final 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. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must devise a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week owing to European obligations.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading 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 pressures are taking a toll on some weary players, many of whom have barely had a break all term.

The manager selected an completely different team, featuring four teenagers, in their final Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to pick the bulk of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly lethargic as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he said.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must balance his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that cup tie but was compelled to introduce his "key players" after the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game unbeaten run versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and a brace in a later league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since that setback. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view 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 chance to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the holiday period ramps up.