You could forgive Oliver Glasner for wishing to spend a restful period with his family in Austria ahead of Christmas, rather than gearing up for Crystal Palace's 29th game of the season—a League Cup last-eight clash against Arsenal. Yet, the notion that Palace might prioritize other tournaments was swiftly rejected by their manager.
"Absolutely not, I don't think so," stated Glasner after his team's side's 4-1 hammering to Leeds. "If somebody informs me that we lose on purpose, the following day I'm not the coach any more."
There is a clear difference in Glasner's philosophy to domestic cup tournaments compared to his predecessor, Roy Hodgson. This first was evident during Palace's run to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals in his first complete campaign in charge. Under Hodgson, the club had previously been knocked out from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup when Glasner took over at Selhurst Park. In contrast, Glasner selected his strongest side for victories over Norwich, QPR, and Aston Villa, paving the way for a meeting with Arsenal.
That previous last-eight match concluded in a 3-2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, following a rather debated hat-trick from Gabriel Jesus, despite Palace having been ahead at the interval. Almost exactly twelve months later, Glasner must devise a plan for revenge against the current Premier League pace-setters in a match that was rescheduled 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 success. Leading Palace to their maiden major trophy with victory in the FA Cup final has ushered in the rigors of European football for the very first time. These demands are catching up with some exhausted squad members, many of whom have hardly had a rest all term.
The coach fielded an completely changed team, featuring four youngsters, in their final Conference League fixture. Yet, ahead of the Arsenal game, he conceded he will have "no option" but to choose the bulk of his first-choice side, which looked extremely jaded as they unusually let in four goals from set-pieces against Leeds. "Must. Yes, have to," he affirmed.
The Gunners' Viewpoint and Selection Considerations
On Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, the circumstances are different. The boss must balance his ambition to win a another major trophy with extreme practicality. Last year, a hamstring injury to Bukayo Saka sustained in a league game against Palace only days after their Carabao Cup fightback greatly harmed their title aspirations.
Arteta had made a number of changes for that cup tie but was forced to bring on his "key players" after 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 potential offside, with no VAR available—a scenario that will be the case again on Tuesday.
Arsenal have an eight-game unbeaten streak versus Palace, featuring seven wins. Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick in last season's League Cup encounter and two in a later league win before suffering a serious knee injury, looks set to start for the first 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," commented Arteta on the congested schedule. "I think this week was the sole complete week we had to get ready. The period until February at least is going to be like this. We have a wonderful opportunity to go into the last four of a competition so we will be prepared."
With key players returning from injury and a desire to progress, Arsenal present a formidable test for a Palace side urgently in need of rejuvenation as the festive schedule intensifies.
