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You could forgive Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a quiet few days with his loved ones in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than preparing for Crystal Palace's 29th fixture of the campaign—a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. However, the suggestion that Palace might focus on other competitions was swiftly rejected by their manager.

"No, I do not believe that," stated Glasner following his team's side's 4-1 loss to Leeds. "If somebody informs me that we are defeated deliberately, the following day I'm not the coach any more."

There is a stark contrast in Glasner's strategy to cup tournaments versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner fielded his first-choice lineup for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, setting up a meeting with Arsenal.

That previous quarter-final tie concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a rather controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at half-time. Now, Glasner must devise a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was moved to this week owing to European commitments.

A Price of Achievement and Continental Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their maiden major trophy with a win in the FA Cup final subsequently ushered in the challenges of continental football for the first time. These pressures are catching up with some exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly had a break all term.

The manager selected an completely changed team, featuring four teenagers, in their last Conference League match. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he admitted he will have "no option" but to select the bulk of his preferred team, which appeared decidedly jaded 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 boss 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 versus Palace only days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented a number of changes for that League Cup tie but was compelled to introduce his "key players" following the break. Saka came off the bench to assist Jesus for a crucial goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "incensed" over a possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a situation that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match unbeaten run versus Palace, including seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and two in a subsequent league win before suffering a serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first since that injury. Arteta disclosed the striker wrote a "beautiful" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We're used to it," said Arteta on the congested schedule. "In my view this week was the only complete week we had to prepare. The period until February at least is going to be similar. We have a wonderful chance to go into the semi-final of a tournament so we will be prepared."

With key players coming back from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of rejuvenation as the holiday schedule intensifies.