Vladimir Putin has taken full day-to-day control of the war in Ukraine, it has been claimed.
The Russian President has reportedly left his military officers in "shock" with impossible demands as he attempts to get the faltering invasion back on track.
The despot is said to have lost patience with his generals as Victory Day celebrations on May 9 quickly approach.
It marks the day Nazi Germany was defeated in 1945 at the end of World War II, with Putin having been using the holiday to glorify Russia and himself.
It is understood the 69-year-old leader has ordered his battle-weary generals to capture the city of Kryvyi Rih, the birthplace of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Such a symbolic success could be fed into the Kremlin's propaganda machine, papering over the stuttering military campaign.
The Russian army has struggled with poor co-ordination, as well as out-dated equipment and severe dips in morale while facing a driven Ukrainian defence with a clear shared goal - and modern weapons from NATO.
It has seen Moscow troops fail to take capital Kyiv before retreating to focus on the east - though now that front is failing to make much headway.
A senior EU source told Mujtaba Rahman, a managing director at the Eurasia Group, that Putin had "now taken day-to day-control of the conflict", reports the Daily Express.
His new key target - Kryvyi Rih - is Ukraine's second largest city by area with a population of around one million.
Social media user "UOI", a frequent commentator on events in Ukraine, wrote: "Putin is demanding that Dvornikov take Kryvyi Rih, Zelensky's homeland, by May 9.
"We are told from communication interceptions that Russian officers are simply in shock.
"They have losses of 400 soldiers a day killed and wounded, and their equipment keeps breaking down."
It comes after General Aleksandr Dvornikov was put in charge of the invasion last month, charged with taking the entire Donbas region in the east.
But the Ukrainians are refusing to back down, despite having vastly inferior numbers.
Through tactical retreats, counterstrikes and guerrilla warfare, they have been able to inflict heavy casualties on the invading troops.
The head of Moscow's army narrowly escaped with his life over the weekend after being caught in artillery fire near Izyum.
General Valery Gerasimov had only taken over command of the Izyum axis days earlier.
Russian forces are seeking to push south towards Slovyansk.
Defending forces, however, targeted the Russian HQ in the area, killing multiple officers, including General Andrey Simonov, a commander of electronic warfare forces of the West district.
Gerasimov managed to escape the attack with minor legs injuries, according to former Internal Affairs minister Arsen Avakov.
Veteran officer Victor Kovalenko tweeted: "Yesterday's Ukraine attack on the Rus. HQ in Izium was designed to liquidate the high-value target - chief of Gen. Staff of RAF Gen. Valeriy Gerasimov.
"The Kremlin sent him to get a victory for the May 9 parade. Gerasimov was close to the blast but wounded.
"Gen. Gerasimov suffered a minor shrapnel wound to his right shin without breaking a bone."
Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to the Minister of Internal Affairs, added: "We received confirmation of yesterday's explosion in Izium (Eastern Ukraine) near the Russian headquarters.
"It is known that Russian Head of General Staff Gerasimov was there to lead the attack on Sloviansk.
"A large number of casualties among senior Russian officers has been confirmed."
