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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a quiet period with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, instead of preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth game of the campaign—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace could focus on other competitions was quickly dismissed by their head coach.

"No, I do not believe that," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "If somebody tells me that we lose on purpose, the next day I'm no longer the coach any more."

There exists a clear difference in Glasner's strategy to cup competitions relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner selected his strongest team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner now faces the task to devise a strategy for payback against the present Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Cost of Success and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a victim of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the demands of European football for the first time. These pressures are catching up with several weary players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all term.

The coach deployed an completely different team, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his first-choice side, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he stated.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the situation are distinct. The boss must juggle his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that cup tie but was compelled 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 possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-game winning streak versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first time since then setback. Arteta revealed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the sole complete week we had to prepare. 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 tournament so we will be prepared."

With key players returning from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting challenge for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the festive period intensifies.