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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a quiet period with his loved ones in Austria before Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might focus on other tournaments was swiftly dismissed by their boss.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should somebody tells me that we lose on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the manager anymore."

There is a stark difference in Glasner's philosophy to cup tournaments relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially was evident during Palace's journey to the League Cup last eight in his first full season in command. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his strongest team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.

That prior last-eight match ended in a 3-2 loss at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having been ahead at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner now faces the task to devise a plan for payback versus the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

The Price of Achievement and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. Leading Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has brought the challenges of European football for the very first time. These pressures are taking a toll on several fatigued players, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a rest all season.

The manager selected an entirely different lineup, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League match. However, for the Arsenal game, he admitted he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his preferred side, which looked extremely lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he said.

The Gunners' Perspective and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with considerable practicality. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly harmed their title aspirations.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup match but was compelled to introduce his "big-hitters" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to set up Jesus for a decisive goal in a move that left Glasner "furious" over a possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match winning streak versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in the previous campaign's League Cup meeting and a brace in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first time since that injury. Arteta disclosed the forward wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the busy schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is will be like this. We have a beautiful chance to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be prepared."

Amid important players returning from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the holiday period intensifies.