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You could excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet few days with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th match of the campaign—a League Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace could focus on other tournaments was swiftly rejected by their manager.

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

There is a marked contrast in Glasner's approach to cup competitions relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his first full season in command. Under Hodgson, the team had already been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his strongest team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie ended in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a rather controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner must figure out a strategy for revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week because of European commitments.

The Cost of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

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

The coach fielded an completely different team, featuring four youngsters, in their last Conference League match. However, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to choose the majority of his preferred team, which looked extremely lethargic as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he stated.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Selection Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The boss must balance his ambition to win a another major trophy with considerable practicality. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had made several changes for that cup match but was compelled to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game winning streak versus Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and two in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, looks set to start for the first since that injury. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used to it," said Arteta on the busy schedule. "In my view this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is going to 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 progress, Arsenal pose a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the festive period ramps up.