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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace might focus on other tournaments was swiftly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," remarked Glasner after his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There exists a marked contrast in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions relative to his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup last eight in his debut 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. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final tie concluded in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback against the current Premier League leaders in a match that was rescheduled to this week because of European obligations.

The Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the challenges of continental football for the first time. These demands are catching up with some weary players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all season.

The manager selected an completely different side, including four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "no option" but to pick the bulk of his preferred side, which appeared decidedly jaded as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The boss must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable practicality. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title aspirations.

Arteta had made several changes for that League 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 potential offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning streak versus Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, is expected to start for the first time since then injury. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only full week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

With important players returning from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive schedule intensifies.