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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful period with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash with Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace might prioritize other competitions was firmly rejected by their boss.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the manager any more."

There is a marked contrast in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup competitions versus his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his first-choice team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a showdown with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight match ended in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a somewhat debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European obligations.

The Price of Success and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the rigors of continental football for the first time. These demands are taking a toll on several fatigued players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The manager fielded an entirely changed team, featuring four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to choose the majority of his first-choice side, which appeared extremely lethargic as they unusually conceded four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable pragmatism. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka suffered in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup tie but was forced to introduce his "key players" following the break. Saka came off the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game winning run against Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and two in a subsequent league win before suffering a serious knee injury, is expected to start for the first time since that 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. "In my view this week was the only complete week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is going to be similar. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

With key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of a spark as the holiday schedule intensifies.