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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th fixture of the campaign—a League Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other tournaments was swiftly dismissed by their boss.

"No, I do not believe that," stated Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 defeat to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the manager any more."

There is a clear contrast in Glasner's approach to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup last eight in his first full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his first-choice lineup for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight match concluded in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, due to a rather controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a plan for payback versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week because of European commitments.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a victim of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final has ushered in the rigors of European football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on some fatigued squad members, many of whom have hardly had a rest all season.

The coach deployed an entirely different team, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the bulk of his preferred side, which looked extremely jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he stated.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Team Considerations

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The boss must balance his ambition to win a another major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup match but was compelled to bring on his "key players" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game winning run against Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first since then injury. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are used to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the only complete week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is will be similar. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid important players returning from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a formidable challenge for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday period intensifies.