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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a quiet period with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the campaign—a League Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace could focus on other competitions was firmly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should anyone tells me that we are defeated deliberately, the next day I'm not the manager anymore."

There exists a clear contrast in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut 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 took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his best team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a strategy for payback against the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

The Cost of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has brought the demands of European football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with several weary players, many of whom have barely had a rest all season.

The coach selected an entirely different team, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to pick the bulk of his preferred team, which appeared extremely jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must balance his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial 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 have an eight-game unbeaten run versus Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're accustomed to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the only complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

With important players coming back from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive schedule intensifies.