🔗 Share this article

You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful period with his family in Austria before Christmas, instead of gearing up for Crystal Palace's twenty-ninth fixture of the season—a Carabao Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the suggestion that Palace could focus on other competitions was firmly rejected by their boss.

"Absolutely not, I do not believe that," declared Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "Should anyone informs me that we lose deliberately, the following day I'm no longer the coach anymore."

There is a clear difference in Glasner's approach to domestic cup tournaments versus his forerunner, Roy Hodgson. This first became clear during Palace's journey to the Carabao Cup last eight in his debut complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from each of the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup by the time Glasner assumed control at Selhurst Park. Conversely, Glasner fielded his best team for wins over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a showdown with Arsenal.

That previous last-eight tie concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, thanks to a somewhat controversial hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, even though Palace having led at half-time. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must devise a strategy for revenge versus the current Premier League leaders in a fixture that was rescheduled to this week because of European commitments.

The Price of Achievement and European Exhaustion

Glasner has, in a way, been a casualty of his own success. Guiding Palace to their first major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final subsequently brought the demands of European football for the first time. These pressures are catching up with some exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly enjoyed a break all season.

The manager fielded an entirely different team, featuring four teenagers, in their final Conference League fixture. However, ahead of the Arsenal clash, he conceded he will have "little choice" but to pick the majority of his first-choice team, which looked decidedly jaded as they uncharacteristically let in four goals from set-pieces versus Leeds. "Must. Yes, must," he stated.

Arsenal's Viewpoint and Selection Considerations

On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The manager must juggle his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme pragmatism. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game versus Palace just days after their Carabao Cup comeback greatly harmed their title hopes.

Arteta had made several changes for that cup tie but was forced to introduce his "big-hitters" following 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 possible offside, with no VAR in operation—a scenario that will repeat again on Tuesday.

Arsenal are on an eight-match unbeaten streak versus Palace, featuring seven victories. Gabriel Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in the previous campaign'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 injury. Arteta revealed the striker wrote a "touching" letter to his teammates about what football means to him.

"We're accustomed to it," commented Arteta on the busy fixture list. "I think this week was the only complete week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is will be like this. We have a wonderful chance to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."

Amid important players returning from injury and a determination to progress, Arsenal pose a daunting test for a Crystal Palace side desperately in need of a spark as the festive schedule ramps up.