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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to enjoy a restful few days with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth match of the campaign—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other competitions was firmly rejected by their manager.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," remarked Glasner following his team's side's four-one defeat to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There is a marked contrast in Glasner's approach to cup competitions versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the team had previously been knocked out from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his first-choice side for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight match concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, due to a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to figure out a plan for revenge versus the present Premier League pace-setters in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

The Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the rigors of European football for the very first time. These pressures are catching up with some exhausted players, many of whom have barely enjoyed a break all term.

The manager fielded an entirely different team, including four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "little choice" but to choose the bulk of his first-choice side, which appeared decidedly jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he affirmed.

Arsenal's Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

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

Arteta had made a number of changes for that League Cup match but was compelled to bring on his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka was introduced from 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 in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-game unbeaten run against Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and two in a subsequent league win before suffering a serious knee injury, looks set to begin for the first 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," said Arteta on the congested fixture list. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. The rest until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be ready."

Amid key players coming back from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal present a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the festive period ramps up.