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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a quiet few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th match of the campaign—a League Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace could focus on other tournaments was quickly dismissed by their boss.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," remarked Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the manager anymore."

There is a marked difference in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup competitions versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut full season in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner picked his strongest side for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final match ended in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner must devise a plan for revenge versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week because of European commitments.

A Cost of Success and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a victim of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought 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 break all term.

The coach fielded an entirely different team, including four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his preferred team, which looked extremely lethargic as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he stated.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Team Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to bring on his "key players" following the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "incensed" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game winning run against Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term 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," said Arteta on the busy schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is will be similar. We have a beautiful chance to go into the last four of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid key players returning from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period intensifies.