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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a quiet few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the campaign—a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace might focus on other tournaments was firmly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should somebody tells me that we lose on purpose, the following day I'm not the manager any more."

There exists a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to domestic cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's journey to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut full season in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his best lineup for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a plan for payback versus the current Premier League leaders in a match that was moved to this week because of European obligations.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has ushered in the rigors of continental football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on several weary squad members, many of whom have hardly had a break all season.

The manager deployed an completely different side, featuring four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to choose the bulk of his preferred side, which looked decidedly jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he affirmed.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with considerable pragmatism. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained 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 cup match but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning streak versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, is expected to start for the first since that injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We're used to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive period intensifies.