I expect there is at least some truth to the reports of successes in the Kharkiv Oblast. If so, then there appears to have been a rather effective deception campaign put out about the focus on Kherson. It’s an unexpected answer to the question of why the Ukrainians apparently were telegraphing their attack on Kherson in advance.
Even the Russian propaganda channels like Rybar, The Grey Zone and others are admitting this is catastrophic. Their war maps pretty much match what Ukraine is saying, with Ukes making it all the way to the west bank of the Oskil at Kupiansk.
Putin recently demanded his Generals take Slovyansk and Kramatorsk (and all of Donetsk) by Sep 15th (obviously not going to happen). With so many forces tied up in Kherson, they had to take from somewhere, and Kharkiv has been “frozen” for months. Kupiansk is a key rail hub that Russia cannot afford to lose, so I expect they will do whatever it takes to keep/retake it. Putin’s plan to take all of Donbas might have to wait.