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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to enjoy a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th fixture of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. However, the notion that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was firmly dismissed by their boss.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the coach anymore."

There exists a marked difference in Glasner's philosophy to cup competitions relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his debut complete campaign in command. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his best team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight match concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Now, Glasner must figure out a strategy for payback versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

The Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

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

The manager fielded an completely changed team, including four teenagers, in their final Conference League match. Yet, for the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to select the majority of his preferred team, which looked decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Perspective and Selection Dilemmas

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a second major trophy with considerable practicality. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only 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 "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a crucial goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match winning run against Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, looks set to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "beautiful" 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 going to be similar. We have a beautiful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be ready."

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