So why these other players over Messi?

Simple. Messi has yet to play a single official senior level match with Newell's.

#Newell'sOldBoys #ComeHomeMessi

Other's suggested:
Norberto Scoponi, the goaltender during Newell's glory years, when they won most of their championships.
Victor Ramos, who holds the record with 104 goals scored for the club.
Santiago Santamaria, teammate of Zanabria, holds the record for most goals vs Central.

But none of the comments following the post agreed. Most suggested Mario Zanabria, which would be my pick. This also makes since, and Mario was a huge part of Newell's first championship.

Another player that we let go far too soon...

24 years old. I wasn't able to find much information on him, so no idea if this is a good move or not... but we have had some good luck with players from Uruguay before, so crossing my fingers.

I wish him luck, but every other team he's been in charge of didn't last long.

Er... make that 35, not 38. Still on the old side for a striker.

If Wikipedia is to be believed, Benedetto has barely seen any action between 2024 and today, having only appeared in 5 matches for Querétaro (Mex) during that time. He only joined Olimpia of Paraguay in Jan of this year.

So, he's old (38) and is likely not match fit.
Here's hoping I'm wrong.

I missed seeing it, by a few months. This is the team that included my personal "Holy Trinity" of Newell's players. Zanabria, Obberti and Santamaria.

Of course, all the negatives I've listed on these players? I'd love to be proven wrong.

Cristian Zavala - +, he's young, 25. -, for an attacking player he doesn't score many goals, at 5'8" he's on the small size.
Gaspar Iñíguez - +, not much that I'm seeing based on his stats. -, only 5'7 1/2", bit short on game time in recent years.

Benjamín Bosch - +side, young, only 19. -side, has barely played at Velez, why not go with someone out of our own academy?
Óscar Duarte - +, has played with Navas, so should have good communication with the keeper. -, other than age (he's 35) none that I'm aware of.

The rumor mill does like to grind. We'll see how many actually pan out. Looking at Mateo Coronel's info on Wikipedia, he's listed as an attacking mid rather than a forward. At 5'8" (1.72 m) he's on the small side. (Messi is 5'7" and has on occasion been nicknamed the Flea.)

I have some recollection of him from when I lived in Argentina. We left shortly before Newell's first championship.

Tried a google search for him, but didn't find much at all. No idea what other teams he played for.