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One might forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful period with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the campaign—a Carabao Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. Yet, the idea that Palace might focus on other tournaments was quickly dismissed by their head coach.

"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner following his team's side's 4-1 defeat to Leeds. "If anyone tells me that we are defeated on purpose, the following day I'm no longer the manager anymore."

There exists a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's run to the League Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had already been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner picked his strongest team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a encounter with Arsenal.

That prior quarter-final tie ended in a three-two loss at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must figure out a strategy for payback against the present Premier League leaders in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week owing to European commitments.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Fatigue

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own achievements. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the rigors of continental football for the very first time. These demands are taking a toll on several exhausted squad members, many of whom have barely had a rest all season.

The manager deployed an entirely different lineup, including four youngsters, in their last Conference League match. Yet, for the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his first-choice side, which looked decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he stated.

The Gunners' Viewpoint and Team Dilemmas

For Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must juggle his ambition to win a second major trophy with extreme practicality. The previous season, a muscle injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup match but was compelled to introduce his "big-hitters" following the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial 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 are on an eight-game winning run versus Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and a brace in a subsequent league win before sustaining a long-term knee injury, is expected to start for the first time since that setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only full week we had to get ready. 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 prepared."

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