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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a quiet period with his family in Austria before Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the campaign—a League Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace could focus on other tournaments was swiftly rejected by their manager.

"No, I do not believe that," stated Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "Should anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm not the coach any more."

There is a stark difference in Glasner's strategy to cup tournaments versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously 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, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie ended in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a slightly controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week owing to European obligations.

The Price of Success and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own success. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has brought the rigors of European football for the first time. These demands are taking a toll on several weary squad members, many of whom have hardly had a rest all season.

The manager fielded an entirely different team, featuring four teenagers, in their final Conference League match. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to choose the majority of his first-choice team, which appeared decidedly jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, must," he affirmed.

Arsenal's Perspective and Team Dilemmas

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

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup tie but was compelled to bring on his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

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

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period intensifies.