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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th 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 head coach.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we lose on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the manager any more."

There exists a marked contrast in Glasner's philosophy to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner selected his first-choice side for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight match concluded in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, following a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback versus the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

A Cost of Achievement and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has brought the rigors of European football for the first time. These pressures are taking a toll on several exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The coach fielded an entirely changed side, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. Yet, for the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to pick the majority of his first-choice side, which looked extremely jaded as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he said.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had made several changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game winning run versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a serious knee injury, looks set to begin for the first time since then setback. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be similar. We have a wonderful chance to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid key players returning from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday period ramps up.