HANOI, July 12 (Reuters) - Striker Sebastian Quintana burst Vietnam's bubble with a 79th-minute equaliser that enabled Qatar to salvage a 1-1 draw with the Asian Cup co-hosts on Thursday.

Vietnam were within sight of becoming the first team to

reach the quarter-finals after Phan Thanh Binh's fortuitous

strike after 32 minutes.

Qatar goalkeeper Mohamed Saqr's attempt to smother Binh's

speculative long-range strike went horribly wrong as he let the

ball squirm under his body and trickle across the line.

But Uruguay-born Quintana, who scored in Qatar's 1-1 draw

with Japan in their opening game, headed home from close range

with just over 10 minutes left to throw Group B wide open.

Vietnam, who beat United Arab Emirates 2-0 at the weekend,

were almost undone completely when Qatar substitute Ali Hassan

hit the crossbar five minutes later.

The home side still lead Group B with four points. Holders

Japan take on UAE on Friday in Hanoi.