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One might excuse Oliver Glasner for preferring to spend a quiet period with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the season—a League Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. However, the idea that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was quickly dismissed by their head coach.

"No, I don't think so," declared Glasner following his team's side's four-one loss to Leeds. "Should somebody informs me that we lose deliberately, the next day I'm not the coach anymore."

There exists a stark contrast in Glasner's philosophy to cup competitions relative to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This initially became clear during Palace's journey to the League Cup last eight in his debut full season in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had already been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner picked his first-choice team for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a three-two defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a slightly debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having led at the interval. Now, Glasner must devise a plan for payback against the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled to this week owing to European commitments.

A Price of Success and European Fatigue

Glasner has, in a sense, been a casualty of his own achievements. 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 weary squad members, many of whom have hardly had a rest all term.

The coach selected an completely changed team, featuring four youngsters, in their last Conference League fixture. However, for the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to pick the majority of his first-choice side, which looked decidedly lethargic as they uncharacteristically conceded four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Have to. Yes, have to," he affirmed.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Team Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are distinct. The manager must juggle his desire to win a another major trophy with considerable pragmatism. The previous season, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace just days after their Carabao Cup fightback significantly damaged their title hopes.

Arteta had implemented several changes for that League Cup match but was forced to bring on his "key players" after the break. Saka was introduced from the bench to assist Jesus for a decisive goal in a passage of play that left Glasner "furious" over a potential offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.

Arsenal have an eight-match unbeaten streak versus Palace, including seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in last season's League Cup meeting and two in a subsequent league win before suffering a long-term knee injury, is expected to begin for the first since then setback. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football signifies to him.

"We are accustomed to it," said Arteta on the busy fixture list. "In my view this week was the only full week we had to get ready. The rest until February at least is going to be similar. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be ready."

Amid important players coming back from injury and a desire to advance, Arsenal pose a formidable test for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the holiday schedule intensifies.