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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a quiet period with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the season—a League Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might focus on other tournaments was quickly rejected by their manager.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we are defeated deliberately, the next day I'm not the manager any more."

There exists a marked contrast in Glasner's approach to cup tournaments relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his first-choice side 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 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a rather controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for revenge against the present Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Achievement and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a victim of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has ushered in the challenges of continental football for the very first time. These demands are taking a toll on some fatigued players, many of whom have hardly had a rest all term.

The manager deployed an entirely different side, including four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the bulk of his first-choice side, which looked extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he said.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are different. The boss must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with extreme practicality. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that cup tie but was compelled to bring on 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 "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR available—a situation that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game winning run 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 serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first time since then injury. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid important players returning from injury and a determination to advance, Arsenal pose a formidable challenge for a Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the festive period intensifies.