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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet period with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace could prioritize other competitions was quickly rejected by their head coach.

"No, I do not believe that," remarked Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should anyone tells me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm not the coach anymore."

There is a stark contrast in Glasner's philosophy to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in charge. 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. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice side for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight tie ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

The Cost of Achievement and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the demands of continental football for the very first time. These demands are taking a toll on several exhausted players, many of whom have hardly had a rest all season.

The manager selected an entirely different lineup, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his preferred team, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he affirmed.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that cup match but was compelled to bring on his "key players" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match winning 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 suffering a serious knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies 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 prepare. The rest until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be ready."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable challenge for a Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive schedule intensifies.