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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet few days with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other competitions was swiftly dismissed by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm not the coach anymore."

There is a marked difference in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup tournaments versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the team had already been knocked out from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner selected his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final tie concluded in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at the interval. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a plan for revenge against the current Premier League leaders in a match that was rescheduled to this week owing to European commitments.

The Cost of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the demands of continental football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with some fatigued squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a rest all season.

The manager deployed an completely different lineup, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League match. Yet, for the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the bulk of his first-choice team, which appeared extremely jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he stated.

The Gunners' Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a another major trophy with considerable practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup match but was compelled to bring on his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match winning streak versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first time since that setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are used to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the sole 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 last four of a tournament so we will be prepared."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting challenge for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period ramps up.