The fact is that even native speakers may mispronounce words if it's the first time they say it. For example, words that they encountered in written form only.
Or they write words incorrectly because it doesn't even closely match the pronunciation.
Or they write words incorrectly because it doesn't even closely match the pronunciation.
I never said English was a superbly designed language, just that it does make sense when you look at the entire history and etymology. But yeah, it's a heavily-kludged mess, though it is pretty good at being accessible for new learners just because it's flexible and has a relatively simple grammar.