Ladbrokes' daily World Cup accumulator: Another goal for Messi on day 27

There were some question marks as to whether the great Lionel Messi was still operating at the same level, partly because he's been away from the limelight in MLS. He's answered those questions emphatically, lighting up the World Cup with seven goals in four games, to take his all-time tally at the World Cup to 20 goals, currently one ahead of Kylian Mbappe in the record books.

Messi is neck-and-neck with Mbappe and Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race, having scored in every World Cup game so far. He is still Argentina's main man and the one they look to for inspiration, in a similar way that Egypt do to Mo Salah. We reckon Messi extends his goalscoring streak and guides the defending champions into the quarter-finals.

In the final game of the round of 16, Switzerland take on Colombia in what looks like an extremely evenly-matched encounter. Colombia have impressed so far at this World Cup, finishing top of Group K ahead of Portugal, and they ground out a 1-0 win over Ghana in the last 32. They reached the quarter-finals in 2014 as James Rodriguez shone, and will fancy their chances of doing so again with Luis Diaz the star this time around.

Switzerland are quietly going under the radar as they so often do, and are proving their worth as one of the World Cup's dark horses. They won Group B before a comfortable 2-0 win over Algeria in the second round, with a mix of stalwarts such as Breel Embolo and Granit Xhaka gelling well with new stars like Johan Manzambi. It's the fourth consecutive World Cup where the Swiss have reached the last 16, but they haven't advanced further since 1954.

This one is tough to call and we think there's a good chance that it goes the distance to penalties. Colombia have conceded just one goal all tournament, with only Spain conceding fewer, and their matches have effectively been home games given the number of fans that have travelled north. That is likely to be the case against Switzerland, and could make the decisive difference in a penalty shootout. We're backing Colombia to advance on penalties in our day 27 acca.

Check back for our daily accumulator predictions throughout the tournament, and don't forget to read our in-depth previews and bet builder tips for the biggest games. As always, head to our World Cup hub for all the latest content throughout the tournament.

Check out the latest betting promotions from Ladbrokes to enhance your betting experience.

All odds and market details are accurate as of the time of publication.

View the latest World Cup 2026 odds.