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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a restful few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other tournaments was quickly rejected by their head coach.

"No, I do not believe that," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the manager anymore."

There exists a clear contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup tournaments relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the League Cup last eight in his debut complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight tie concluded in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a strategy for revenge against the present Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

A Price 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 subsequently brought the challenges of European football for the very first time. These pressures are catching up with several fatigued squad members, many of whom have hardly had a break all season.

The manager fielded an completely different lineup, including four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to pick the majority of his first-choice side, which appeared extremely lethargic as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he stated.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Team Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must balance his desire to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "key players" after 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 are on an eight-game unbeaten streak against Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, is expected 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're used to it," commented Arteta on the congested schedule. "I think this week was the only full week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is going to be similar. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

With key players returning from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal present a formidable test for a Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday period intensifies.