The former Villa boss is looking forward to renewing acquaintances with Reading having faced up to the mighty R's last October in the Worthington Cup, whilst still with Aston Villa. On that occasion Gregory's men emerged victorious thanks in part to some good saves from Great Dane Peter Schmeichel.
The Royals will open their Division One campaign at Pride Park on August 10th, with both sides hoping for maximum points in order to set the tone for greater things to follow.
John Gregory told dcfc.co.uk: "It was a bit of a shock when the fixtures came out and there was no Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool on there.
"We are looking forward to welcoming Reading. They were high fliers in their league last year and did well in cup competitions as well.
"They have a great stadium which all the clubs enjoyed going to last season, and I'm sure it will be the same for us here at Pride Park. They were the team everyone wanted to beat."